THE   STORY  OF   THE   BRITISH  COLONIES 


AUSTRALASIA 


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THE  STORY   OF 

AUSTRALASIA 

NEW   SOUTH    WALES,   TASMANIA,   WESTERN 

AUSTRALIA,  SOUTH  AUSTRALIA,  VICTORIA 

QUEENSLAND,    NEW  ZEALAND 


BV 

GREVILLE    TREGARTHEN 

AUTHOR  OF  "NEW  SOUTH  WALES  :  1860  TO  1866,"  "A  SKETCH  OF  THE 
PROGRESS  AND  RESOURCES  OF  NEW  SOUTH  WALES,"  ETC. 


NEW  YORK 

G.  P.  PUTNAM'S   SONS 

LONDON  :   T.    FISHER    UNWIN 

1893 


COPYRIGHT,    1893 
BY 

G.  P.  PUTNAM'S  SONS 

Entered  at  Stationers'  Hall.  London 

BY  T.  FISHER  UNWIN 


PREFACE. 


THE  writer  of  Australian  history  is  confronted 
with  peculiar  difficulties.  The  clamour  of  the  strife 
which  accompanied  the  birth  of  free  institutions  has 
scarcely  died  away  and  the  greater  part  of  the  litera- 
ture dealing  with  past  events  is  so  tainted  by  the 
heated  feelings  of  partizans  that  it  is  necessary  to  use 
it  with  the  greatest  caution.  Then,  again,  sufficient 
time  has  not  elapsed  to  allow  the  incidents  of  former 
years  to  disclose  their  full  significance,  and  matters 
which  are  really  still  producing  grave  changes  in 
social  and  political  life  are  apt  to  appear  of  little 
consequence,  while  others  of  a  less  far-reaching 
character  assume  an  unmerited  importance.  In  the 
following  pages  the  desire  has  been  to  adhere  as 
closely  as  possible  to  the  story  of  the  seven  colonies 
without  entering  into  questions  which  are  still  the 
subject  of  contention  ;  but  there  are  many  things  in 
connection  with  the  marvellous  progress  of  these 
young  communities  which  it  has  been  impossible  to 
mention  here.  The  gradual  formation  of  a  new 
society — a  new  nation — in  a  New  World  cannot  fail 
to  be  a  spectacle  of  absorbing  interest,  but  to  trace 


viil  PREFACE. 

each  step  in  the  process  of  its  evolution  would  re- 
quire far  more  space  than  is  available.  So  many 
books,  public  documents,  and  records  have  been  con- 
sulted that  it  is  impossible  to  acknowledge  each 
separately,  but  the  writer  is  indebted  in  some  degree 
to  most  of  the  accepted  authorities  on  Australasian 
affairs.  This  little  volume  has  been  written  amidst 
many  disadvantages,  and  under  very  great  pressure 
of  official  work  ;  but  it  is  hoped  that  it  may  induce 
some  to  make  a  better  acquaintance  with  this  Great 
South  Land,  which  Governor  Phillip  in  1788  so  fitly 
described  as  "the  most  valuable  acquisition  Great 
Britain  ever  made." 

SYDNEY. 


CONTENTS. 


PREFACE 


PAGE 

vii 


I. 


EARLY  DISCOVERERS. 


1503-1772    .... 

The  motive  for  maritime  discovery — De  Gonneville — The 
voyage  of  the  Duyfhen — Dirk  Hartog — Other  Dutch  Ex- 
plorers—The wreck  of  the  Batavia — Tasman — Dampier — 
William  de  Vlaming — The  last  Dutch  Expedition — Cook — 
The  transit  of  Venus — Cook  sights  the  Great  South  Land — 
Botany  Bay— Wreck  of  the  Endeavour — Banks— Marion  du 
Fresne  and  De  Surville. 


II. 


THE  FIRST  FLEET.     1788 


12 


Cook's  report — The  American  Colonies — Matra's  proposal — 
The  American  loyalists — A  change  in  the  treatment  of 
criminals — Suggestions  for  a  Convict  Colony — The  Plan — 
Lord  Sydney  selects  Captain  Phillip  to  command — Phillip's 
previous  career — Preparations — Incompleteness  of  arrange- 
ments— Phillip's  dreams  of  the  future — The  "First  Fleet" 
sets  sail — Rio  de  Janeiro — Portuguese  courtesy — The  Cape  of 
Good  Hope — The  Australian  coast  is  sighted — Arrival  in 
Botany  Bay — Phillip  explores  Port  Jackson — Sydney  Cove 
selected — La  Perouse. 


CONTENTS. 

NEW  SOUTH  WALES. 
III. 


PAGE 


BOTANY  BAY.     1788-1792 33 

The  landing — Advice  to  the  convicts — King  is  sent  to 
Norfolk  Island — Attempts  at  cultivation — Early  troubles — 
The  military — Major  Ross — Exploration  of  the  surrounding 
country — Good  land  is  found  at  Rose  Hill — Apprehension  as  to 
the  supply  of  food — Strained  relations  between  Phillip  and 
Ross — Ross  places  his  officers  under  arrest — The  natives — 
Phillip's  good  intentions — Their  property  wantonly  destroyed 
by  the  convicts — Arabanoo — Bennilong  and  Colebe — Phillip 
is  speared — Sickness  amongst  the  convicts — The  food  supply 
— Convicts  attempt  to  escape — The  story  of  Bryant — Ross  is 
subordinate — Loss  of  the  Sirius — The  colony  is  threatened 
with  starvation — Phillip's  heroism — The  look-out  at  South 
Head — Arrival  of  the  Juliana  and  Justinian — The  full  ration 
restored — Mutton  Birds  at  Norfolk  Island — Ross  is  recalled — 
The  New  South  Wales  Corps — Famine  again  threatens — 
Phillip  retires. 


IV. 
THE  CONVICTS  AND  THEIR  GUARDS.     1792-1806    .       48 

Grose  and  the  magistrates — Indulgences  to  the  military — 
Grose  disregards  instructions — The  commencement  of  the 
spirit  traffic — King  at  Norfolk  Island — Troubles  with  the 
soldiers — King  is  firm  — Grose  disapproves — King  and  the 
Maoris — Corn  bills — Grose  retires  —  Arrival  of  Hunter — 
Attempts  to  reform — His  opinion  of  the  New  South  Wales 
Corps — King  is  sent  to  supersede  him — The  liquor  traffic  and 
military  traders — Macarthur — King's  measures— The  female 
orphan  institution — The  convicts  become  restless — The  insur- 
rection— Pursuit  of  the  rebels — The  treatment  of  prisoners 
— The  Ilawkesbury  settlers — The  administration  of  justice — 
The  military  give  more  trouble — King  leaves  the  colony. 


CONTENTS.  XI 

V. 

PAGE 

THE  DEPOSITION  OF  GOVERNOR  BLIGH.     1806-1810      67 

State  of  the  settlement — Rumours  of  insurrection — Bligh's 
previous  career — Banks  recommends  him  for  the  command — 
Banks'  letter  to  Bligh — Bligh  soon  makes  enemies — The 
quarrel  with  Macarthur — He  appeals  for  a  fair  trial — The 
alleged  conspiracy — The  Court  upholds  his  appeal — Bligh 
tries  to  coerce  the  Court — Johnston  arrives  in  Sydney— 
Macarthur  is  released — Johnston  is  petitioned  to  depose 
Bligh — Bligh  is  arrested,  and  Johnston  assumes  command — 
Bligh  on  the  Porpoise — The  case  of  Mr.  Suttor — The  Court- 
martial  of  Johnston. 

VI. 

THE  EMANCIPISTS.     1810-1822        ....      84 

Governor  Macquarie  arrives — Recall  of  the  New  South  Wales 
Corps — Bligh's  return — Public  buildings  and  works — The 
spirit  contract — The  assignment  system — Commerce — With- 
drawal of  indulgences — Discovery  of  a  Pass  over  the  Blue 
Mountains — Macquarie  on  Bathurst  Plains — Further  explora- 
tions— Troubles  with  the  natives — Social  questions — The 
trespass  incident — Bigge's  report — Macquarie  is  recalled. 


VII. 

THE  RULE  OF  BRISBANE  AND  DARLING.     1822-1831       97 

Arrival  of  Governor  Brisbane — The  New  South  Wales  Judi- 
cature Act — Changes  in  the  Constitution — The  case  of  Dr. 
Douglas — Free  immigrants — Bushranging — The  freedom  of 
the  Press — Darling  takes  command — The  Newspaper  Act — 
Libel  actions — Amendments  in  the  Constitution — The  Eman- 
cipists and  trial  by  jury — Fisher's  ghost — Land  legislation — 
Speculation — The  industrial  crisis — Increase  in  bushranging — 
The  case  of  Sudds  and  Thompson — Darling  is  recalled — 
Exploration — Currie  and  Ovens — Allan  Cunningham — Hume 
and  Hovell — Stuart — Mitchell. 


Xll  CONTENTS. 

VIII. 

PAGE 

CHANGES  IN  THE  CONSTITUTION.     1831-1846         .     114 

Governor  Bourke — Questions  of  Finance — The  Bushranging 
Act  is  renewed — Bourke  attempts  to  improve  the  condition 
of  the  convicts — Agitation  for  Representative  Government — 
The  Patriotic  Association — The  Police  and  Gaols  question — 
Burton's  charge — Education — Religion — The  pamphlet  by 
"  Humanitas  " — Riddell  is  elected  Chairman  of  Quarter 
Sessions — Bourke  dismisses  him  from  the  Executive  Council 
— Bourke  resigns — Assisted  immigration — The  Commercial 
Crisis  of  1843 — The  Bank  of  Australia  lottery — Boiling-down 
commenced — Outrages  on  the  natives — The  Myall  Creek  mas- 
sacre— Changes  in  the  Land  Laws — The  Governor  and  the 
squatters — A  new  constitution — Liens  on  growing  crops  and 
the  mortgage  of  live  stock — Gipps  and  his  Council — Gipps 
prorogues  Parliament. 

IX. 

THE  STRUGGLE  FOR  FREE  INSTITUTIONS.    1846-1851     131 

Governor  Fitzroy — Reconciliation  of  Government  with  Par- 
liament— The  Question  of  Quit  Rents — The  Abolition  of 
Transportation — The  arrival  of  the  Hashemy — Mrs.  Chisholm 
— Education — Sydney  University — Agitation  for  self-govern- 
ment— Earl  Grey's  despatch  on  the  Constitution  excites 
general  opposition — The  Report  of  the  Committee  of  the 
Privy  Council — Wentworlh  opposes  its  recommendations — 
The  solemn  protest  of  the  Legislative  Council — The  new 
Parliament — Sir  John  Pakington's  despatch — Changes  in 
society — Went  worth — Lang — Lowe — Deas  Thompson . 

X. 

THE  DISCOVERY  OF  GOLD.     1851     .        .        .        .     144 

Gold  first  mentioned  in  1823 — Stizlecki — Clarke — McGregor 
— The  rush  to  California — Hargrave  returns  to  Australia  and 
finds  gold — The  discovery  proved — The  first  rush — Absurd 
proposals — Deas  Thompson's  regulations — Disturbances  at  the 
Turon  —  Nuggets — Miners'  earnings  —  Wages  and  prices — 
Great  influx  of  population. 


CONTENTS.  xiii 

XI. 

PAGE 

RESPONSIBLE  GOVERNMENT.     1853-1885          .        .151 

Wentworth's  draft  Constitution  Bill — The  proposed  here- 
ditary Upper  House  provokes  opposition  —  Wentworth's 
prophecy — The  Bill  is  passed  by  the  Council  and  receives 
Royal  Assent — Changes  of  ministries — Early  legislation — 
Robertson's  land  legislation — Free  selection — Effects  of  the 
measure — Abolition  of  State  Aid  to  religion — A  peculiar 
political  crisis — Material  progress — Internal  communication — 
Railways — The  unemployed — The  Eight  Hours  Movement — 
Bushrangers — Insecurity  of  life  and  property — The  outbreak 
at  Golden  Point — Liberal  legislation — Payment  of  Members 
— Triennial  Parliaments — The  attack  on  the  Duke  of  Edin- 
burgh— The  Treason  Felony  Act — Execution  of  O'Farrell — 
Public  Instruction — Land  Legislation — The  Soudan  Contin- 
gent. 

XII. 

PRESENT  CONDITION  OF  THE  COLONY.     1893         •     I7° 

Pastoral  industries  —  Agriculture  —  Settlement  —  Mining — 
— Internal  communication — The  future. 


TASMANIA. 

XIII. 
THE  SETTLEMENT  AT  THE  DERWENT.     1803-1837  .     180 

Fears  of  the  French — Bowen  and  Collins — The  natives — The 
massacre  at  Risdon — The  Norfolk  Island  settlers — Scarcity  of 
food — Death  of  Collins — Macquarie  visits  the  island — The 
Judge-Advocate  —  The  Lieutenant-Governor's  Court  —  In- 
dustrial development — Bushrangers — The  proclamation  of 
martial  law — The  recall  of  Governor  Davey — Discoveries — 
Sorrell  checks  bushranging — The  story  of  Michael  Howe — 
Importations  of  sheep — The  management  of  the  convicts — The 
first  church — The  Legislative  and  Executive  Councils — The 
Press — The  Hobart  Town  Gazette — Newspaper  Act — Agita- 
tion for  Representative  Government — Arthur's  measures — The 


XIV  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

Usury  Laws — Exploration — The  Van  Diemen's  Land  Com- 
pany— Executions — Attempts  to  escape — The  story  of  the 
Cyprus — The  natives — Brutality  of  the  settlers — George 
Augustus  Robinson — The  black  line — Arthur  leaves  the 
colony. 


XIV. 

EVENTS  PRECEDING  CONSTITUTIONAL  GOVERNMENT. 

1837-1851 201 

Religious  difficulties  —  State  Aid  to  religion  —  Franklin's 
methods — Maconochie — Science  and  Art — Resumption  of 
transportation — The  agitation  for  Responsible  Government 
is  renewed — Franklin  is  recalled — Wilmot  assumes  command 
— Unsettled  state  of  the  colony — Financial  difficulties — 
Estimates  of  expenditure  called  for — The  Patriotic  Six — The 
Imperial  Government  gives  way — Secret  accusations — Wilmot 
is  recalled — Exploration — Arrival  of  Sir  William  Denison — 
The  promise  with  regard  to  transportation — The  Secretary  of 
State  breaks  the  compact — The  Anti-Transportation  League. 


XV. 

UNDER  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION.     1851-1893        .     211 

The  Constitution  of  1850 — Final  abolition  of  transportation- 
Tasmania — Great  exodus  of  convicts  to  Victoria — Discovery  of 
gold  in  Tasmania — An  exhausted  labour  market — Tasmanian 
produce  at  the  Victorian  gold  fields — The  Draft  Constitution — 
Material  progress — Railways — Mining —  Education  —  Public 
works — The  agreement  of  the  Launceston  and  Western  Kail- 
way — The  final  settlement — The  discovery  of  tin  at  Mount 
Bischoff — Iron  deposits — Description  of  the  island — Its  re- 
semblance to  parts  of  England — Amendments  in  the  Consti- 
tution— The  question  of  Money  Bills — A  deadlock — Appoint- 
ment of  an  Agent-General. 


CONTENTS.  XV 

VICTORIA. 
XVI. 

PAGE 

FIRST  SETTLEMENT.     1803-1839      ....     222 

Fears  of  the  intentions  of  the  French — The  expedition  under 
Collins — Collins  asks  leave  to  abandon  the  settlement — The 
landing  at  Sorrento  —  William  Buckley — Western  Port — 
Victoria  again  abandoned — The  Henty  Brothers  at  Portland 
Bay — Batman's  Company — Batman  lands  at  Port  Phillip — 
His  purchase  from  the  natives — The  Government  refuse  to 
recognise  his  title — John  Pascoe  Fawkner — Other  settlers 
follow — Governor  Bourke's  proclamation — A  magistrate  is 
appointed — Bourke's  recommendations. 

XVII. 
THE  ADMINISTRATION  OF  MR.  LATROBE.  1839-1852.     236 

The  appointment  of  a  Superintendent — Progress — The  first 
land  sale — Early  difficulties — A  commercial  crisis — The  elec- 
tions for  the  New  South  Wales  Council — Agitation  for 
separation — The  bogut  elections — Independence  is  granted 
— The  discovery  of  gold  —  The  diggings  —  Immigration — 
Difficulties  of  administration — The  license  fee — Highway 
robbery  —  Convict  Prevention  Act  —  Discontent  at  the 
goldfields — The  increase  of  the  license  fee — Effects  of  the 
gold  rush — The  riotous  meetings  near  Mount  Alexander — 
The  Government  draw  back — The  hardships  of  immigrants. 


XVIII. 
THE  EUREKA  STOCKADE.     1852-1857      .        .        .     248 

The  revenue  from  the  goldfields — The  cost  of  Government — 
An  export  duty  on  gold  proposed — Troubles  threaten — The 
disturbance  at  Forest  Creek — The  demands  of  miners — Dis- 
affection at  Bendigo — The  Governor  surrenders — Latrobe 
retires — The  arrival  of  Governor  Hotham — The  financial 
position — Attempts  to  collect  the  license  .fee — Hotham's  tour 
of  the  goldfields — The  case  of  Bentley — Reinforcements  are 
sent  to  Ballaarat — Hotham  is  firm — The  digger  hunt — The 
meeting  on  Bakery  Hill — The  attack  on  the  stockade — Rout 
of  the  rebels — Order  is  restored. 


XVI  CONTENTS. 

XIX. 

PAGE 

THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION.     1857-1863    .         .        .     260 

Financial  difficulties — The  framing  of  the  Constitution — 
Democratic  tendencies — An  elective  council — The  proclama- 
tion of  Responsible  Government — The  death  of  Sir  Charles 
Hotham — Sir  Henry  Barkley  arrives — Alterations  in  the 
Constitution — Exploration— The  Burke  and  Wills  expedition 
— Cooper's  Creek — A  forced  march — Burke  reaches  the 
Northern  Coast — A  tedious  return — Deserted — The  search 
for  Mount  Hopeless — Death  of  Burke  and  Wills — Relief 
expeditions — The  finding  of  King. 

XX. 
UNDER  RESPONSIBLE  GOVERNMENT.     1863-1893     .     268 

Arrival  of  Sir  Charles  Darling — Unsettled  state  of  the  Colony 
— The  Customs  Bill — The  Council  refuses  to  pass  it — The 
"  tacking  "  trick — A  deadlock — An  ingenious  device — The 
Council  passes  the  Customs  Bill — Darling's  recall — The 
Darling  Grant — More  tacking — The  Governor  is  firm — 
Another  crisis — The  solution  of  the  difficulty — Payment  of 
Members — The  third  deadlock — Black  Wednesday — An  ap- 
peal to  England — Mr.  Berry's  Mission — Recall  of  Sir  George 
Bowen — The  Payment  of  Members  Bill  is  passed — Material 
progress — Inflow  of  capital — The  Coalition  Government — 
Public  works. 

WESTERN  AUSTRALIA. 
XXI. 

EVENTS  FROM  1826  TO  1874 276 

The  French  scare — A  detachment  is  sent  to  King  George's 
Sound — Stirling  describes  the  Swan  River — The  pioneers — 
The  landing  at  Garden  Island — Gloomy  prospects — Perth  and 
Freemantle — Claims  for  land — The  system  of  settlement — The 
case  of  Mr.  Peel — General  ruin — The  natives — Governor  Ilutt 
— Land  regulations — It  is  proposed  to  send  convicts — The 
offer  accepted — The  search  for  new  pastures — Fitzgerald's 
account  of  the  Colony — Escapades  of  the  convicts — The  pro- 
posal to  cease  transportation — Explorations. 


CONTENTS.  XV11 

XXII. 

PAGE 

CONSTITUTIONAL  CHANGES.     1875-1893          .        .     286 

Systems  of  Government — Agitation  for  Responsible  Govern- 
ment— A  compromise  suggested — It  is  refused — A  spirited 
public  works  policy — It  is  marred  by  mismanagement — The 
deficit  railway  construction — The  land  grant  system — The 
electric  cable — Revival  of  agitation  for  responsible  institutions 
— A  change  in  public  opinion — The  resolutions  of  the  Council 
— Opposition  in  England — The  mission  in  support  of  the  Con- 
stitution Bill — Mineral  resources — Prospects  for  the  future. 


SOUTH  AUSTRALIA. 

XXIII. 
EARLY  SETTLEMENT.     1829-1840    ....     295 

Mr.  Edward  Wakefield's  Pamphlets — Colonial  Society — 
System  of  colonisation— Colonisation  Board — First  landing  of 
emigrants — Foundation  of  Adelaide — Governor  Hindmarsh — 
Hindmarsh  and  Fisher — Hindmarsh  recalled  and  Fisher  dis- 
missed— Governor  Gawler — Finances  in  a  hopeless  muddle — 
Public  works  commenced  to  relieve  unemployed — General 
exodus — Three  classes  of  society — Gawler  recalled — Loan 
by  English  Government  —Captain  George  Grey — Brighter 
prospects. 

XXIV. 

IMPROVING  PROSPECTS.     1840-1855        .        .         .     307 

Edward  John  Eyre,  Explorer — Sufferings  of  his  party — Mur- 
der of  Baxter  by  blacks — Strange  discovery  of  silver — Captain 
Bagot — Discovery  of  copper — Princess  Royal  Company — 
South  Australian  Mining  Company — Burra  Burra  Mine — 
Gawler's  policy  of  retrenchment — Colonel  J.  H.  Robe — Re- 
ligious Endowment  Bill — Sir  Henry  Young — Navigation  of 
River  Murray — Mr.  Cadell — Discovery  of  gold — Renewed 
prosperity — New  system  of  coinage — Opening  up  the  Interior 
— Expedition  of  John  McDowall  Stuart. 


XV111  CONTENTS. 


XXV. 

I'AGE 

UNDER  RESPONSIBLE  GOVERNMENT.     1855-1893     .     321 

The  first  Council— The  Franchise— Mr.  R.  Torrens— Land 
and  Mineral  Acts — Foundation  of  Palmerston — Overland 
Telegraph  —  Submarine  Cable  —  Railways  —  Survey  of  the 
country. 


QUEENSLAND. 

XXVI. 
THE  MORETON  BAY  SETTLEMENT.     1825-1851        .     330 

Bigge's  Report — Oxley  in  the  Mermaid — The  story  of 
Pamphlett — The  Brisbane  River — The  establishment  of  a 
penal  settlement  at  Moreton  Bay — The  murder  of  Logan — 
The  Darling  Downs — The  penal  establishment  is  abandoned 
— Sir  George  Gipps  marks  out  the  town  of  Brisbane — A 
Police  Magistrate  is  appointed — The  aborigines — The  native 
police — The  treatment  of  the  blacks — Explorations — Sturt-^ 
Leichardt — Mitchell — Kennedy. 

XXVII. 
THE  COLONY  OF  QUEENSLAND.     1851-1893    .        .     342 

Separation  from  New  South  Wales — Sir  George  Bowen 
appointed  first  Governor — Constitution — Discovery  of  gold 
— The  rush  to  the  Fitzroy  River — Great  distress  at  the 
diggings — The  Gympie  goldfields — Mount  Morgan — Culti- 
vation in  the  Northern  districts — Island  labour — The  evils 
of  the  traffic — The  Polynesian  Labourers  Act — Material 
progress — Separation  of  the  Northern  district — The  public 
finances. 


CONTENTS.  xix 

NEW  ZEALAND. 
XXVIII. 

PAGE 

FROM  THE   FIRST  SETTLEMENT  TO  THE  RECALL  OF 

GOVERNOR  FITZROY.     1791-1846      .         .        .     351 

The  whaling  ships  in  New  Zealand  waters — The  Boyd 
massacre — The  establishment  of  a  mission  at  the  Bay  of 
Islands — New  Zealand  is  made  a  dependency  of  New  South 
Wales — Maori  customs  and  character — Tapu — Hongi  visits 
England — The  arrival  of  Captain  Herd — Hongi's  wars — A 
Government  Resident  is  appointed — Baron  de  Thierry's 
proclamation — "  The  United  Tribes  of  New  Zealand " — 
Captain  Hobson  at  the  Bay  of  Islands — The  provisional 
Government  at  Kororareka — Schemes  for  colonisation — The 
New  Zealand  Company — Land  troubles — Captain  Hobson  is 
appointed  Lieutenant-Governor — The  Treaty  of  Waitangi — 
A  French  Colonisation  Company — New  Zealand  is  proclaimed 
an  independent  colony — The  outbreak  at  the  Wairau  Valley — 
The  Land  Question — The  war  with  Hone  Heke — Trouble  at 
Port  Nicholson — Recall  of  Fitzroy. 


XXIX. 
EVENTS  FROM  1846  to  1861    .         .        .        .         .     369 

Gloomy  prospects — Grey  commences  operations  against  the 
Maoris — The  defeat  of  Heke — War  in  the  Hutt  Valley — The 
imprisonment  of  Ruaparaha  —  Measures  of  reform  —  Grey 
makes  enemies — The  war  in  the  Wanganui  district — The 
Maoris  sue  for  peace — -Grey  at  Taranaki — The  agitation  for 
Representative  Government — The  New  Zealand  Government 
Bill — Grey  recommends  the  suppression  of  the  Act — Great 
revival  of  immigration — Material  progress — The  effect  of  the 
gold  discoveries — The  New  Zealand  Company  is  dissolved — 
Local  Government — The  Constitution  of  1852 — Grey  leaves 
the  Colony — A  Constitutional  anomaly — The  appointment  of 
Colonel  Gore  Browne — The  Taranaki  difficulties — The  King 
movement. 


XX  CONTENTS. 

XXX. 

PAGE 

THE  END  OF  THE  MAORI  WARS.     1861-1871         .     393 

Proclamation  to  the  Waikatos — Petition  by  Maori  chiefs — 
Reappointment  of  Sir  George  Grey — Making  of  roads  through 
Hunua  Forest — Reforms  in  the  North  Island — Maori  distrust 
of  the  Government — Meeting  of  Grey  and  Maori  chiefs — 
Rupture  between  Grey  and  General  Cameron — War  in  Tara- 
naki — Defeat  of  Maoris — Twenty  thousand  men  available — 
Confiscation  of  land — Attack  on  Rangiriri — Prisoners  on 
Island  of  Kawan — Great  loss  of  the  Maoris— Hauhauism — 
Peace  declared — Resignation  of  the  Ministry — Resignation  of 
General  Cameron — Recall  of  Grey — Native  Land  Courts — 
Te  Kooti — Colonel  McDonnell — End  of  the  war — Arrest  of 
Te  Whiti. 

XXXI. 
UNDER  THE  CONSTITUTION.     1854-1893         .         .     408 

Increase  of  population — Finding  of  gold — The  electoral  sys- 
tem— Provincial  Councils — Seat  of  Government — Loans  and 
debentures — Effects  of  borrowed  money — Sir  George  Grey 
first  Premier — Steady  progress — Frozen  mutton— Railway 
construction — Prosperity — Scenery  and  climate. 


XXXII. 
WORK  AND  WAGES.     1788-1892      ....     415 

Assigned  servants — The  Governor  fixes  wages — Early  hard- 
ships— Increase  of  manufactories — Free  immigration — Con- 
dition of  wage-earners — The  Commercial  Crisis  of  1843 — 
Effect  of  the  discovery  of  gold — A  fall  in  wages — The  Eight- 
hours'  Day — The  Labour  Unions — Chinese  competition — 
Anti-Chinese  legislation — The  future  of  the  labour  organisa- 
tions— The  Parliamentary  Labour  Party — Relations  of  em- 
ployers and  employed. 


CONTENTS.  XXI 

PAGE 

XXXIII. 
FEDERATION,     1847-1893        ....  428 

The  suggestions  of  Earl  Grey — The  Report  of  the  Privy 
Council — Wentworth's  proposals — The  Select  Committee  on 
Federation  in  New  South  Wales  and  Victoria — The  Customs 
compact — The  Conference  of  1881 — The  Conference  of  1883 
— The  Federal  Council  Act — The  Australasian  Naval  Force 
Act  of  1887 — The  Conference  of  1890 — The  National  Austra- 
lasian Convention. 

APPENDIX        .  .  437 

Table  showing  the  population  and  relative  importance  of  each 
of  the  Seven  Colonies  of  Australasia  at  the  commencement  of 
1891. 

INDEX 439 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


CAPTAIN  COOK Frontispiece 

MAP   OF     AUSTRALIA,    TASMANIA,    AND    NEW  ZEALAND      PAGE 

Facing         i 

ARTHUR    PHILLIP,    CAPTAIN     GENERAL    AND    COMMAN- 
DER-IN-CHIEF   IN    AND    OVER    NEW   SOUTH   WALES          2O 
MAP    OF    NEW    SOUTH    WALES       .  34 

CAPTAIN    JOHN    HUNTER     .  .  .  .  -53 

CAPTAIN    BLIGH  ...  ...         68 

SIR  JOSEPH    BANKS,    BART.,  K.B.,    P.R.S.         .  .  -71 

THE    OLD   TANK    STREAM,    SYDNEY        ....         86 

SYDNEY   UNIVERSITY  .  .  .  .  .  .136 

FREE   PUBLIC   LIBRARY         .  .  .  .  .  .       1 66 

BATHURST  .  .  .  .  .  .  .  -173 

MONUMENT   TO    CAPTAIN    COOK.  .  .  .  .176 

GOVERNMENT   HOUSE  .  .  .  .  .  .178 

MAP   OF   TASMANIA    .  ,  .  .  .  .  .       l8l 

TASMANIAN    NATIVE  .  .  .  .  .  .  .183 

HEAD    OF   TASMANIAN    NATIVE    .  .  .  .  .       190 

TASMANIAN    NATIVE    (COAL    RIVER   TRIBE)  .  .  .194 

MOUNT    BISCHOFF 217 

MAP   OF    VICTORIA 224 

MAP   OF   WESTERN    AUSTRALIA    .  .  .  .  .277 


XXIV 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


MAP  OF  SOUTH  AUSTRALIA 296 

ADELAIDE          ........     308 

THE     MURRAY     (FROM     MURRAY     BRIDGE    RAILWAY 

STATION)  .        .         .        .         .         .        .        -317 

MAP  OF  QUEENSLAND 331 

BRISBANE 335 

MAP  OF  NEW  ZEALAND    .        .        .        .        .        -352 

A  MAORI  CHIEF 354 

MILFORD  SOUND       .         .         .         .         .         .         -357 

A  MAORI  DWELLING 374 

THE  WAIKATO  RIVER        ......     383 

RANGIRIRI.     (FROM  THE  WAIKATO)  ....     388 

STRONGHOLD  OF  THE  MAORIS,  RANGIRIRI          .         -391 

TE    KOOTI .      404 

AUCKLAND    HARBOUR — THE   WHARF    .            .            .  .412 

TYPES    OF    COLOURED    LABOURERS         .            .            .  -419 

DIAGRAM       SHOWING      VARIATIONS       IN      PRICES  AND 

WAGES    SINCE    1841     .            .            .             .            .  .421 


AUSTRALIAN  COMMONWEALTH. 


i. 


EARLY   DISCOVERERS. 
(1503-1772.) 

IT  is  not  easy  for  any  one  knowing  the  great 
natural  wealth  of  Australia  to  realise  the  bitter  dis- 
appointment which  must  have  been  felt  by  those 
venturesome  navigators  who  first  sighted  the  shores 
of  that  continent.  The  minds  of  all  men  were  full  of 
the  marvellous  discoveries  of  Marco  Polo  in  the  East, 
and  of  Columbus  and  Cabot  across  the  Atlantic,  and 
the  motive  was  no  longer  the  discovery  of  a  route 
to  the  Indies  by  which  the  treasures  of  the  East  might 
be  carried  by  sea  to  Europe,  but  each  explorer  was  am- 
bitious to  rival  a  Cortes  or  Pizarro,  and  hoped  in  the 
Pacific  to  find  countries  as  rich  and  as  populous  as 
those  annexed  by  Spain  in  America.  But  instead  of 
wealth  and  barbaric  splendour,  an  old  civilisation  and 
magnificent  cities,  such  as  those  of  Mexico  and  Peru, 
they  discovered  the  most  dreary  and  uninviting 


2  EARLY  DISCOVERERS. 

coasts,  with  few  harbours  or  rivers  and  peopled  by 
a  wild  and  degraded  race,  showing  a  bitter  hostility 
to  the  visitors. 

It  is  difficult  to  determine  who  was  really  the  first 
European  to  discover  Australia.  There  are  several 
candidates  for  the  honour,  but  the  validity  of  the 
claims  is,  in  many  cases,  more  than  doubtful.  It  is 
quite  possible  that  long  before  the  more  or  less  sys- 
tematic exploration  of  the  Australian  seaboard  the 
Malays,  or  perhaps  Europeans  bound  to  or  from 
Eastern  ports,  may  have  sighted  parts  of  the  coast ; 
but  such  glimpses  did  not  invite  a  closer  inspection. 
The  object  sought  was  a  rich  trading  station  and  not 
a  land  fit  for  European  colonisation,  and  consequently 
Australia,  being  out  of  the  ordinary  track  of  the  mer- 
chant ships  and  offering  no  harvest  of  spices,  for  the 
acquisition  of  which  all  the  world  was  mad,  attracted 
but  little  attention  ;  indeed,  but  for  the  fair  prospect 
of  finding  spice-producing  lands  in  these  latitudes,  the 
mysterious  slumber  which  for  so  many  centuries 
enveloped  Australasia  would  have  continued  still 
longer. 

In  1503  a  Frenchman,  named  De  Gonneville,  after 
rounding  the  Cape  of  Good  Hope,  is  said  to  have 
been  driven  by  contrary  winds  to  an  unknown  shore, 
but  the  evidence  goes  to  support  the  contention  that 
Madagascar,  and  not  Australia,  was  the  land  visited. 
Various  claims  to  the  discovery  of  Australia  by  the 
Portuguese  previous  to  1606  receive  some  support,  but 
there  is  every  reason  to  suppose  that  the  Dnyflien 
from  Bantam  was  the  first  vessel  which  bore 
Europeans  over  Australian  waters.  The  voyage  of 


DUTCH  EXPLORERS.  3 

the  Dutch  was  cut  short  by  want  of  provisions,  and 
after  coasting  some  little  way  along  the  eastern  shore 
of  the  Gulf  of  Carpentaria  they  were  compelled  to 
return.  The  land  they  described  as  "  for  the  greatest 
part  desert,  but  in  some  places  inhabited  by  wild, 
cruel,  black  savages,  by  whom  some  of  the  crew  were 
murdered."  For  ten  years  no  new  explorations  were 
made,  but  in  1616  Dirk  Hartog,  another  Dutchman, 
sailed  down  the  west  coast,  being  followed  in  two  years 
by  the  Mauritius  and  a  little  later  by  the  Leeuwin. 
The  accounts  given  by  the  commanders  of  these 
vessels  were  most  unfavourable,  but  the  Dutch  East 
India  Company  was  not  yet  satisfied,  and  in  1623  the 
Pera  and  Arnhem  were  despatched.  This  expedition 
was  as  fruitless  as  those  that  preceded  it.  Not  long 
after  making  the  Australian  coast  Jan  Carstens, 
captain  of  the  Arnhem,  and  eight  of  his  crew  were 
murdered  by  the  natives,  and  the  Pera,  although  she 
sailed  far  round  the  north  coast,  carried  back  a  report 
that  "  shallow  waters  and  barren  coasts  were  every- 
where found,  with  islands  altogether  thinly  peopled 
by  divers  cruel,  poor  and  brutal  nations,  and  of  very 
little  use  "  to  the  Company.  So  far  exploration  had 
been  confined  entirely  to  the  west  and  north  coasts, 
but  in  1627  Pieter  Nuyts,  in  the  Guide  Zeepard, 
examined  the  south  shore  for  some  hundreds  of  miles. 
He  was  scarcely  more  favourably  impressed  than  the 
others.  That  it  was  "  a  foul  and  barren  shore  "  was 
all  he  could  say  for  the  country. 

The  next  event  of  any  importance  in  the  story  of 
Australian  exploration  is  full  of  dramatic  interest.  The 
Batavia,  commanded  by  Francis  Pelsart,  meeting  with 


4  EARLY  DISCOVERERS. 

heavy  weather,  was  separated  from  her  companions, 
and  in  a  storm  was  driven  on  the  reef  called  "  Hout- 
man's  Abrolhos  "  on  the  west  coast.  The  ship  before 
long  commenced  to  break  up,  so  it  was  determined 
to  abandon  her  and  seek  refuge  on  three  adjacent 
islands.  The  landing  was  effected  safely,  but  to  the 
consternation  of  all  no  fresh  water  was  to  be  found, 
and  Pelsart  at  last  set  out  in  one  of  the  boats  to  seek 
it  on  the  mainland.  Here  he  was  also  unsuccessful, 
and  therefore  determined  to  steer  for  Batavia  for  assist- 
ance. Soon  after  his  departure  some  of  the  ship- 
wrecked crew  mutinied,  and,  under  the  leadership  of 
the  supercargo,  committed  the  most  ghastly  atrocities. 
Another  party,  however,  were  able  to  repulse  the  at- 
tack of  the  mutineers,  and  after  several  conflicts,  in  one 
of  which  the  supercargo  was  captured,  the  two  com- 
panies waited  for  the  return  of  Pelsart.  The  intention  of 
the  murderers  appears  to  have  been  to  seize  his  ship  on 
its  arrival  and  start  on  a  piratical  cruise,  and  when 
before  long,  the  Sardam>  with  Pelsart  on  board,  was 
sighted,  the  mutineers  put  off  to  board  her.  They  had 
dressed  themselves  in  striking  costumes  made  from  the 
despoiled  cargo  of  the  Batavia,  and  their  peculiar 
appearance  aroused  Pelsart's  suspicions  and  put  him 
on  his  guard.  By  threatening  to  fire  on  their  small 
boat  he  compelled  them  to  lay  down  their  arms,  and 
then,  having  learnt  the  state  of  affairs,  all  but  two 
were  summarily  hanged.  These  two  underwent,  if 
anything,  a  worse  fate,  for  they  were  put  on  shore  on 
the  mainland,  and  the  agony  they  must  have  suffered 
as  they  watched  the  ship  slowly  vanishing  from  sight, 
leaving  them  to  their  fate  amongst  those  "  wild,  cruel, 


ANTONY    VAN  DIEMAN.  5 

black  savages "  was  a  just  retribution  for  their 
crimes. 

Another  tragedy,  similar  to  that  in  which  Carstens 
lost  his  life,  was  enacted  in  1636,  when  Poole  visited 
New  Guinea,  and,  although  the  supercargo  took  charge 
of  the  ship  and  continued  the  voyage,  no  new  dis- 
coveries were  made. 

From  this  time  the  records  of  Australian  exploration 
are  more  satisfactory.  In  1637  Antony  van  Dieman, 
a  man  imbued  with  strong  ambitions  in  the  field 
of  enterprise  and  discovery,  received  from  the  Dutch 
the  Governorship  of  Java.  He  lost  but  little  time  in 
despatching  an  expedition  in  search  of  the  Southern 
Continent,  and  in  1642  Abel  Janz  Tasman,  with 
Gerrit  Jansen,  set  sail  in  the  ships  Heemskirk  and 
ZeeJiaan.  Tasman  first  steered  for  Mauritius,  which 
was  then  a  Dutch  possession,  and  after  a  brief  stay 
pursued  his  travels,  sailing  in  an  easterly  direction  in 
search  of  the  "  Great  South  Land."  On  the  24th  of 
November  Point  Hibbs,  a  limestone  promontory  on 
the  West  Coast  of  Tasmania,  appeared  above  the 
horizon,  and  before  sunset  lofty  mountains  gradually 
shaped  themselves  in  the  distance,  and  confirmed 
Tasman's  opinion  that  he  had  at  last  touched  a 
portion  of  the  territory  of  which  he  was  in  search. 
Having  doubled  the  southern  extremity  of  the  island, 
a  course  was  steered  close  along  the  shore,  and  a  week 
after  first  sighting  land  the  Heemskirk  and  ZeeJiaan 
dropped  anchor  in  Marion  Bay.  Boats  were  lowered 
and  parties  sent  ashore,  but  although  signs  of  the 
presence  of  natives  were  found,  no  human  beings  were 
seen.  Two  days  later  the  carpenter  of  the  Heemskirk, 


6  EARLY  DISCOVERERS. 

swam  ashore  and  erected  a  post  on  which  a  compass 
was  carved  and  the  prince's  flag  hoisted,  and  the 
wanderers  weighed  anchor,  and  sailing  along  the  east 
coast  again  lost  sight  of  land  in  the  unknown  seas. 
On  the  8th  of  the  same  month  the  look-out  reported 
land  which  proved  to  be  the  south  island  of  New 
Zealand.  The  ships  anchored  in  a  little  bay,  but  the 
natives  surrounded  them  in  their  canoes  and  three  of 
Tasman's  crew  were  murdered.  On  his  return  to 
Batavia  the  voyage  was  considered  to  have  been  so 
successful  that  in  1644  the  same  commander  was 
again  despatched  with  the  Limmen,  Zeemew,  and  De 
Brak,  and  on  this  occasion  he  explored  the  west 
coasts  of  the  Gulf  of  Carpentaria. 

The  next  explorer  of  any  importance  was  William 
Dampier,  who,  in  command  of  the  Bachelor's  Delight 
and  Cygnet,  with  a  crew  of  buccaneers,  examined 
the  west  coast  from  Shark  Bay  to  Dampier's  Archi- 
pelago. His  report  of  the  country  on  his  return 
to  England  was  not  favourable,  but,  as  he  was  in 
imminent  peril  of  being  marooned  on  the  unknown 
land  by  his  unruly  crew,  an  unbiassed  account  could 
hardly  be  expected. 

In  1696  William  de  Vlaming  while  cruising  on  the 
west  coast  discovered  and  named  the  Swan  River, 
and  three  years  later  Dampier  again  visited  Australia 
in  the  Roebuck,  and  made  further  explorations  on  the 
North-west.  On  his  return  he  wrote  an  interesting 
account  of  his  travels,  but  he  had  little  to  say  in 
favour  of  either  the  country  or  its  people  ;  the  one 
was  sterile  and  almost  devoid  of  animals,  while  the 
other  were  hideous  and  filthy.  For  the  next  seventy 


CAPTAIN  COOK.  7 

years  little  was  done  in  the  way  of  Australian 
exploration,  although  the  Dutch  sent  out  one  more 
expedition  in  1705,  under  Martin  van  Delft.  However, 
in  1768  Captain  James  Cook  started  on  the  famous 
voyage,  with  which  really  began  the  interest  of 
Englishmen  in  the  lands  of  the  South  Pacific. 
Cook's  expedition  originated  with  the  Royal  Society, 
which  was  anxious  that  some  capable  person  should 
observe  the  transit  of  Venus  over  the  sun's  disc  from 
the  South  Seas.  A  suggestion  to  this  effect  was 
favourably  received  by  George  III.,  and  a  small  vessel 
under  the  command  of  Cook,  who  had  already  dis- 
tinguished himself  in  Canada  and  in  survey  work  off 
the  coast  of  Newfoundland,  was  fitted  out  by  the 
Government.  The  Endeavour,  the  ship  specially 
selected  by  Cook  for  this  service,  had  been  built  for 
a  collier.  She  was  a  little  barque  of  370  tons,  of 
small  draught,  but  great  carrying  capacity,  and  very 
strong  construction.  A  scientific  staff  was  appointed 
to  carry  out  the  observations,  Mr.  Green  acting  as 
astronomer  and  Sir  Joseph  Banks  and  Dr.  Solander 
occupying  the  position  of  botanists  ;  and  on  the  26th 
of  August,  1768,  the  necessary  instruments  and  pro- 
visions having  been  taken  on  board,  the  Endeavour 
weighed  anchor  and  sailed  out  of  Plymouth  Sound. 
After  a  quick  passage  the  wanderers  arrived  at 
Tahiti,  where  they  at  once  erected  a  temporary 
observatory,  guarded  by  a  little  fort,  and  on  the  3rd 
of  June  the  transit  of  the  planet  was  most  success- 
fully observed.  But  although  the  main  object  of 
the  expedition  had  now  been  accomplished,  it  was 
determined  to  search  for  the  great  Southern  Con,- 


8  EARLY  DISCOVERERS. 

tinent  before  returning  to  England.  Cook  therefore 
steered  south  on  leaving  Tahiti,  and  after  passing  the 
Society  Islands  held  his  course  till  land  was  sighted 
from  the  masthead  and  a  chain  of  mountains  rose  on 
the  misty  horizon.  On  the  8th  of  October,  1769,  the 
Endeavour's  anchor  was  dropped  in  the  Bay  of 
Tauranga,  New  Zealand,  and  attempts  were  at  once 
made  to  open  communication  with  the  natives,  but 
without  success.  Disgusted  with  the  hostility  and 
distrust  of  the  Maories,  Cook  sailed  along  the  coast 
to  the  southward,  charting  carefully  as  he  went,  until, 
on  reaching  Mercury  Bay,  the  scientific  men  again 
landed  to  take  observations  of  the  transit  of  Mercury, 
while  Cook  seized  the  opportunity  of  leaving  a  record 
of  his  visit  on  a  tree.  Hoisting  the  English  flag,  he 
took  possession  of  the  country  in  the  name  of  King 
George.  From  Mercury  Bay  he  sailed  along  the 
coast  passing  Tolaga  Bay,  Hauraki  Gulf  and  the  Bay 
of  Islands,  and  then,  doubling  Cape  Maria  Van 
Diemen,  shaped  his  course  close  to  the  western  shore 
of  the  North  Island.  At  Queen  Charlotte's  Sound 
another  stop  was  made,  and  more  flagstaffs  were 
erected,  then  again  sail  was  set  and  Cook  passed 
through  the  straits  and,  turning  South  Cape,  com- 
pleted the  circumnavigation  of  the  islands.  On 
reaching  Cape  Farewell  he  steered  for  the  open  sea, 
and,  following  a  westerly  course,  after  three  weeks 
came  in  sight  of  the  Australian  coast  at  Cape  Howe. 
Turning  north-east  the  coastline  was  traced,  names 
being  given  to  Mount  Dromedary,  the  Pigeon  House, 
Point  Upright,  and  Cape  St.  George,  till  Botany  Bay 
was  reached,  and  here  anchor  was  cast.  As  the  ship 


BOTANY  BAY.  9 

brought  to  near  the  shore  a  group  of  natives  was 
perceived  apparently  cooking  by  a  fire  ;  but,  to  the 
surprise  of  Cook  and  his  comrades,  they  paid  no 
attention  whatever  to  the  ship,  continuing  quietly  at 
their  occupation.  Even  the  clank  and  rattle  of  the 
cable  as  it  ran  out  of  the  hawse-pipe  had  no  effect, 
and  it  was  not  till  boats  were  lowered  and  turned 
towards  the  beach  that  the  natives  showed  any  signs 
of  being  aware  of  the  presence  of  intruders.  As  soon 
as  the  boat  headed  for  the  land,  however,  two  men 
sprang  to  their  feet  and,  coming  down  to  the  rocks, 
stood  brandishing  their  rude  weapons  and,  with 
wild  gesticulations,  warned  Cook's  party  to  keep  off. 
A  musket  was  fired  between  them,  which  induced  one 
of  the  natives  for  a  moment  to  drop  his  spears,  which 
however  he  immediately  recovered  ;  and,  even  when  a 
charge  of  small  shot  was  fired  into  the  legs  of  another 
in  return  for  a  stone  which  he  had  thrown  at  the  boat, 
the  two  warriors  ran  back  into  the  bush  for  a  moment 
and  then  reappeared  with  bark  shields.  For  some  time 
the  Endeavour  remained  in  the  bay,  and  her  captain, 
with  Banks  and  Solander,  made  many  excursions  into 
the  country,  during  which  the  two  last  obtained  such 
a  great  variety  of  flowers  and  plants  that  the  place 
was  called  Botany  Bay.  Although  anxious  to  have 
friendly  intercourse  with  the  natives,  all  attempts 
failed,  and,  after  hoisting  the  British  flag  and  formally 
taking  possession  in  the  king's  name  of  the  country, 
which  he  called  New  South  Wales,  Cook  sailed  out 
between  the  heads  to  continue  the  exploration  of  the 
coast.  The  entrances  to  Port  Jackson  and  Broken 
Bay  were  marked  on  the  chart,  but  the  Endeavour 


10  EARLY  DISCOVERERS. 

did  not  again  drop  anchor  until  Moreton  Bay  had 
been  reached.  Only  a  brief  stay  was  made  there 
before  the  voyage  northward  was  resumed,  the  ship 
being  kept  as  close  to  the  shore  as  was  deemed 
safe,  and  the  principal  features  of  the  coast  care- 
fully noted.  After  about  thirteen  hundred  miles  had 
been  traversed  in  this  way,  the  first  serious  mishap 
was  met  with  ;  about  eleven  o'clock  one  night  the 
water  suddenly  began  to  shoal  and  before  soundings 
could  be  taken  the  ship  struck  heavily  on  a  sunken 
rock,  and  the  water  almost  immediately  rose  in  the  hold 
so  rapidly  that  the  pumps  could  hardly  keep  it  under. 
The  guns  and  all  heavy  gear  were  jettisoned,  but  still 
the  Endeavour  bumped  and  scraped  on  the  reef.  At 
last  she  was  floated  off,  but  in  such  a  leaky  condition, 
that  there  was  every  prospect  of  her  foundering.  No 
land  was  in  sight  and  the  outlook  was  most  gloomy 
when,  as  a  last  resource,  some  canvas  was  passed 
under  the  vessel  over  the  injured  spot  and  the  inflow 
of  water  thus  greatly  reduced.  After  sailing  some 
distance  in  this  crippled  state  land  was  sighted  and 
the  mouth  of  a  little  river  entered,  where  the  ship 
was  careened  and  examined.  The  rent  in  her  bottom 
was  more  extensive  than  had  been  supposed,  and,  but 
for  the  fact  that  the  spike  of  coral  which  had  pierced 
her  had  been  broken  off  and  remained  plugging  the 
hole,  no  possible  device  could  have  prevented  her 
from  sinking.  In  commemoration  of  the  adventure 
Cook  named  the  headland  he  had  first  sighted  Cape 
Tribulation,  and  the  river  after  his  little  barque. 
When  two  months  had  been  spent  in  thoroughly 
repairing  the  Endeavour,  the  voyage  was  continued 


FRENCH   NAVIGATORS.  II 

and  the  coast  charted  as -far  as  Cape  York,  whence 
Cook  sailed  through  Torres  Straits  to  England. 

The  second  and  third  voyages  made  by  the  great 
explorer  were  full  of  interest,  but  there  is  not  space 
to  follow  them  in  detail  here.  It  will  suffice  to  say 
that  the  reports  carried  to  England  were  so  favourable 
that  during  the  next  few  years  Cook,  with  the 
Resolution,  Discovery,  and  Adventure,  visited  Tas- 
mania and  New  Zealand  ;  but  the  determination  to 
occupy  Australian  territory  sprang  from  the  impres- 
sions left  in  the  mind  of  Banks  by  his  short  sojourn 
in  Botany  Bay.  Between  the  arrival  of  Phillip's  fleet 
to  found  a  settlement  and  Cook's  departure  others 
sailed  in  Australian  waters,  and  one  of  the  expedi- 
tions was  marred  by  a  fatal  affray  with  the  natives. 
In  1772  the  French  navigator,  Marion  du  Fresne, 
anchored  his  ships,  the  Mascarin  and  the  Castries,  in 
Marion  Bay,  Tasmania,  and  an  attempt  to  com- 
municate with  the  aborigines  led  to  a  fight.  Soon 
afterwards,  having  sailed  to  New  Zealand,  the  luckless 
Frenchman  was  murdered  with  twenty-seven  of  his 
crew  in  a  quarrel  with  the  Maories  at  the  Bay  of 
Islands.  Another  Frenchman,  De  Surville  had  been 
cruising  in  New  Zealand  waters  at  the  same  time  as 
Cook  in  1769,  though  little  was  added  to  the  knowledge 
of  the  Great  South  Land  by  either  of  the  French 
expeditions. 


II. 


"THE   FIRST   FLEET,"  1788 

ALTHOUGH  the  report  carried  back  by  Cook  and 
Banks  was  in  many  respects  most  favourable,  a 
considerable  period  elapsed  before  any  definite 
proposals  were  made  to  utilise  their  discoveries. 
Important  and  difficult  matters  nearer  home  absorbed 
the  attention  of  the  Government  and,  until  a  com- 
bination of  circumstances  made  it  absolutely  im- 
perative that  some  new  field  for  the  transportation 
of  criminals  should  be  found,  the  eyes  of  statesmen 
were  not  seriously  turned  towards  the  distant  southern 
land. 

The  action  of  Lord  North's  Government  in  insisting 
on  the  tea  duties  had  produced  an  insurrection  in  the 
American  Colonies  in  1775,  which  in  the  following 
year  developed  into  the  memorable  War  of  Inde- 
pendence and  finally  severed  the  bond  between  the 
States  and  the  Mother  Country.  The  American 
plantations  were  for  ever  closed  as  a  destination  for 
British  criminals,  and,  as  a  result,  the  gaols  quickly 
filled  to  overflowing,  and  abuses  grew  with  corre- 
sponding rapidity.  So  serious  was  the  aspect  of 


MATRASS  PROPOSAL.  13 

affairs  that  an  effective  method  of  disposing  of 
convicts  became  a  matter  of  the  first  public  im- 
portance, and  numerous  proposals,  more  or  less 
feasible,  were  continually  being  put  forward. 

The  deplorable  condition  of  those  of  the  American 
colonists,  who  had  not  taken  up  arms  against  England, 
was  also  attracting  the  attention  of  many,  till  at 
last  the  desire  to  induce  the  Government  to  provide 
some  haven  for  the  people  who  had  lost  all  in  the 
support  of  the  king's  cause  across  the  Atlantic,  led 
James  Maria  Matra  to  formulate  "  a  proposal  for 
establishing  a  settlement  in  New  South  Wales." 

The  proposal  was  addressed  to  the  Government 
in  August,  1783,  the  year  in  which  England  so  re- 
luctantly recognised  as  Sovereign  States  what  had  once 
been  her  colonies.  Mr.  Matra,  after  mentioning  the 
loss  of  America,  dwelt  on  the  "  enticing  allurements 
to  European  adventurers  "  held  out  by  some  of  the 
newly  discovered  countries,  and  more  especially  New 
South  Wales.  He  quoted  Cook's  favourable  im- 
pressions, and  drew  a  sketch  of  the  capabilities  of 
the  new  country  from  a  strategical,  commercial,  and 
agricultural  point  of  view.  Special  stress  was  laid 
on  the  character  of  the  soil  and  climate  as  especially 
suitable  for  the  cultivation  of  spices — that  peculiarly 
tempting  bait  for  the  mercantile  enterprise  of  the 
time — and  the  New  Zealand  flax,  on  specimens  of 
which,  brought  home  by  Banks,  such  encomiums  had 
been  passed  ;  "  this  country,"  continued  Mr.  Matra, 
"  may  afford  an  asylum  to  those  unfortunate  Ameri- 
can loyalists,  whom  Great  Britain  is  bound  by  every  tie 
of  honour  and  gratitude  to  protect  and  support  where 


14  "  THE   FIRST  FLEET,"    1788. 

they    may   repair   their   broken    fortunes   and  again 
enjoy  their  former  domestic  felicity." 

After  further  description  of  the  benefits  likely  to 
accrue  to  the  Mother  Country  from  the  occupation 
of  New  South  Wales,  he  closed  his  paper  with  some 
remarks  on  the  policy  of  emigration.  Mr.  Matra's 
scheme  attracted  some  notice  ;  but  apparently  the 
Government  had  not  as  strong  a  sense  of  their  obli- 
gation to  the  American  loyalists  as  he  had  supposed, 
and  the  Ministry  went  out  of  office  in  December 
without  taking  any  definite  action  in  the  matter. 
Lord  Sydney,  who  succeeded  at  the.  Home  Office, 
saw,  however,  in  Mr.  Matra's  proposal  a  solution  of 
the  then  most  pressing  difficulty.  Why  should  not 
this  distant  land  be  a  "  very  proper  region  for  the 
reception  of  criminals  condemned  to  transportation"? 
Mr.  Matra  jumped  at  this  idea,  in  which  he  con- 
sidered "good  policy  and  humanity  are  united."  The 
attempts  to  form  a  penal  settlement  in  Africa  had 
failed.  The  mortality  amongst  the  convicts  was 
enormous,  and  the  expense  very  heavyi  Popular 
sentiment  on  the  question  of  penal  treatment  was 
also  undergoing  change,  and  the  theory  that  the 
reformation  of  criminals  should  be  regarded  as  much 
as  their  punishment  was  gaining  ground.  In  a 
country  in  which  convicts  would  be  some  twelve 
thousand  miles  away  from  their  old  associations,  an 
experiment  in  reformation  surely  might  be  tried 
without  danger  and  with  some  chance  of  success. 
Lord  Howe,  then  First  Lord  of  the  Admiralty, 
threw  cold  water  on  Matra's  plan  ;  but  Sir  John 
Young,  another  naval  authority,  took  the  matter  up, 


SUGGESTIONS  FOR  A  CONVICT  COLONY.    15      X 

and  slightly  modifying  some  of  Matra's  proposals 
and  elaborating  others,  submitted  to  the  authorities 
"  a  rough  outline  of  the  many  advantages  that  may 
result  to  this  nation  from  a  settlement  made  on  the 
coast  of  New  South  Wales."  The  American  loyalists 
were  not  forgotten  by  him  ;  but  perhaps  the  greatest 
inducement  held  out  for  the  establishment  of  the 
colony  was  that  "  here  was  an  asylum  in  which  felons 
could  be  cheaply  kept,  and  from  which  there  would 
be  no  possibility  of  their  returning." 

A  feeling  of  jealous  apprehension  existed  at  this 
time  that  the  French  contemplated  forming  settle- 
ments in  the  far  Pacific,  and  this  doubtless  led  Lord 
Sydney  to  accept  more  readily  the  scheme  for  colo- 
nising the  distant  territory.  In  August,  1786,  the 
following  paper  was  forwarded  to  the  Lords  of  the 
Admiralty,  with  a  request  that  the  necessary  arrange- 
ments for  transport  and  victualling  be  made  with  the 
utmost  despatch  : 

"  Heads  of  a  plan  for  effectually  disposing  of 
convicts,  and  rendering  their  transportation  re- 
ciprocally beneficial,  both  to  themselves  and  to  the 
State,  by  the  establishment  of  a  colony  in  New  South 
Wales,  a  country  which,  by  the  fertility  and  salubrity 
of  the  climate,  connected  with  the  remoteness  of  its 
situation  (from  whence  it  is  hardly  possible  for 
persons  to  return  without  permission),  seems  pecu- 
liarly adapted  to  answer  the  views  of  Government 
with  respect  to  the  providing  a  remedy  for  the  evils 
likely  to  result  from  the  late  alarming  and  numerous 
increase  of  felons  in  this  country,  and  more  par- 
ticularly in  the  metropolis. 


l6  "  THE   FIRST  FLEET,"    1788. 

"  It  is  proposed  that  a  ship  of  war  of  a  proper 
class,  with  a  part  of  her  guns  mounted,  and  a  sufficient 
number  of  men  on  board  for  her  navigation,  and  a 
tender  of  about  200  tons  burthen,  commanded  by 
discreet  officers,  should  be  got  ready  as  soon  as 
possible  to  serve  as  an  escort  to  the  convict  ships,  and 
for  other  purposes  hereinafter  mentioned. 

"  That  in  addition  to  their  crews,  they  should  take 
on  board  two  companies  of  marines  to  form  a  military 
establishment  on  shore  (not  only  for  the  protection 
of  the  settlement,  if  requisite,  against  the  natives, 
but  for  the  preservation  of  good  order),  together  with 
an  assortment  of  stores,  utensils,  and  implements, 
necessary  for  erecting  habitations  and  for  agriculture, 
and  such  quantities  of  provisions  as  may  be  proper 
for  the  use  of  the  crews.  As  many  marines  as  pos- 
sible should  be  artificers,  such  as  carpenters,  sawyers, 
smiths,  potters  (if  possible),  and  some  husbandmen. 
To  have  a  chaplain  on  board,  with  a  surgeon,  and  one 
mate  at  least ;  the  former  to  remain  at  the  settlement. 

"  That  these  vessels  should  touch  at  the  Cape  of 
Good  Hope,  or  any  other  place  that  may  be  con- 
venient, for  any  seed  that  may  be  requisite  to  be  taken 
thence,  and  for  such  live  stock  as  they  can  possibly 
contain,  which,  it  is  supposed,  can  be  procured  there 
without  any  difficulty,  and  at  the  most  reasonable 
rates,  for  the  use  of  the  settlement  at  large. 

"  That  Government  should  immediately  provide 
a  certain  number  of  ships  of  a  proper  burthen  to 
receive  on  board  at  least  seven  or  eight  hundred 
convicts,  and  that  one  of  them  should  be  properly 
fitted  for  the  accommodation  of  the  women. 


PLAN  FOR   CONVICT  COLONY.  17 

"  That  these  ships  should  take  on  board  as  much 
provisions  as  they  can  possibly  stow,  or  at  least  a 
sufficient  quantity  for  two  years'  consumption  ;  sup- 
posing one  year  to  be  issued  at  whole  allowance,  and 
the  other  year's  provisions  at  half  allowance,  which 
will  last  two  years  longer,  by  which  time,  it  is  pre- 
sumed the  colony,  with  the  live  stock  and  grain 
which  may  be  raised  by  a  common  industry  on  the 
part  of  the  new  settlers,  will  be  fully  sufficient  for 
their  maintenance  and  support. 

"  That,  in  addition  to  the  crews  of  the  ships 
appointed  to  contain  the  convicts,  a  company  of 
marines  should  be  divided  between  them,  to  be  em- 
ployed as  guards  for  preventing  ill  consequences  that 
might  arise  from  dissatisfaction  amongst  the  convicts, 
and  for  the  protection  of  the  crew  in  the  navigation 
of  the  ship  from  insults  that  might  be  offered  by  the 
convicts. 

"  That  each  ship  should  have  on  board  at  least 
two  surgeons'  mates  to  attend  to  the  wants  of  the 
sick,  and  should  be  supplied  with  a  proper  assortment 
of  medicines  and  instruments,  and  that  two  of  them 
should  remain  with  the  settlement. 

"  After  the  arrival  of  the  ships  which  are  intended 
to  convey  the  convicts,  the  ship  of  war  and  tender 
may  be  employed  in  obtaining  live  stock  from  the 
Cape,  or  from  the  Molucca  Islands,  a  sufficient 
quantity  of  which  may  be  brought  from  either  of 
those  places  to  the  new  settlement  in  two  or  three 
trips  ;  or  the  tender,  if  it  should  be  thought  most 
advisable,  may  be  employed  in  conveying  to  the  new 
settlement  a  further  number  of  women  from  the 

3 


i8  "THE  FIRST  FLEET,''  1788. 

Friendly  Islands,  New  Caledonia,  &c.,  which  are 
contiguous  thereto,  and  from  whence  any  number 
may  be  procured  without  difficulty. 

"  The  whole  regulation  and    management   of  the 

o  o 

settlement  should  be -committed  to  the  care  of  a 
discreet  officer,  and  provision  should  be  made  in  all 
cases,  both  civil  and  military,  by  special  instructions 
under  the  Great  Seal  or  otherwise,  as  may  be  thought 
proper. 

"  Upon  the  whole,  it  may  be  observed  with  great 
force  and  truth  that  the  difference  of  expense  (what- 
ever method  of  carrying  the  convicts  thither  may  be 
adopted),  and  this  mode  of  disposing  of  them  and 
that  of  the  usual  ineffectual  one  is  too  trivial  to  be 
a  consideration  with  Government,  at  least  in  com- 
parison with  the  great  object  to  be  obtained  by 
it  especially  now  the  evil  is  increased  to  such  an 
alarming  degree,  from  the  inadequacy  of  all  other 
expedients  that  have  hitherto  been  tried  or  suggested. 

"  It  may  not  be  amiss  to  remark  in  favour  of  this 
plan  that  considerable  advantage  will  arise  from  the 
cultivation  of  the  New  Zealand  hemp  or  flax-plant 
in  the  new  intended  settlement,  the  supply  of  which 
would  be  of  great  consequence  to  us  as  a  naval 
power,  as  our  manufacturers  are  of  opinion  that 
canvas  made  of  it  would  be  superior  in  strength  and 
beauty  to  any  canvas  made  of  the  European  material, 
and  that  a  cable  of  the  circumference  of  ten  inches 
made  from  the  former  would  be  superior  in  strength 
to  one  of  eighteen  inches  made  of  the  latter.  The 
threads  or  filaments  of  this  New  Zealand  plant  are 
formed  by  nature  with  the  most  exquisite  delicacy, 


CAPTAIN  PHILLIP  APPOINTED  FIRST  GOVERNOR.     IQ 

and  may  be  so  minutely  divided  as  to  be  manu- 
factured into  the  finest  linens. 

"  Most  of  the  Asiatic  productions  may  also,  without 
doubt,  be  cultivated  in  the  new  settlement,  and  in  a 
few  years  may  render  our  recourse  to  our  European 
neighbours  for  those  productions  unnecessary. 

"  It  may  also  be  proper  to  attend  to  the  possibility 
of  procuring  from  New  Zealand  any  quantity  of  masts 
and  ship  timber  for  the  use  of  our  fleets  in  India,  as 
the  distance  between  the  two  countries  is  not  greater 
than  between  Great  Britain  and  America.  It  grows 
close  to  the  water's  edge,  is  of  size  and  quality 
superior  to  any  hitherto  known,  and  may  be  ob- 
tained without  difficulty." 

It  is  no  difficult  matter  to  draft  a  scheme  for  a 
settlement  in  an  unknown  country,  but  the  elabora- 
tion of  the  details  and  the  inception  of  the  work  can 
only  be  done  by  a  man  of  unusual  ability.  Fortunately 
for  Lord  Sydney  he  knew  of  a  man  capable  of  the 
extraordinary  service  required,  and  had  sufficient 
confidence  to  appoint  him  Governor  of  the  new 
colony,  in  spite  of  the  scarcely  veiled  disapproval 
of  the  Admiralty.  Captain  Arthur  Phillip,  the 
officer  selected,  had  entered  the  navy  at  the  age 
of  sixteen,  and,  after  serving  in  the  Seven  Years'  War 
as  a  midshipman,  had  been  made  a  lieutenant  on  the 
capture  of  Havannah.  At  the  close  of  hostilities 
he  married  and  settled  down  to  the  life  of  a  country 
gentleman,  until  war  breaking  out  between  Portugal 
and  Spain,  he  hastened  to  seek  distinction  in  the 
service  of  the  first-named  nation.  In  1778  he  returned 
to  England  to  take  his  part  in  the  operations  against 


ARTHUR    PHILLIP, 

Captain  General  and  Coinmander-in-Chief  in  and  over  the  Territory 
of  New  South  Wales. 


PREPARATIONS  FOR  THE  EXPEDITION.       21 

France,  and  in  September  of  the  following  year  was 
made  master  and  commander  of  the  Basilisk.  Two 
years  later  he  was  promoted  to  the  rank  of  post- 
captain,  being  entrusted  first  with  the  Ariadne  and 
then  with  the  Europe.  He  must  have  had  oppor- 
tunities during  this  period  of  showing  that  he  pos- 
sessed exceptional  energy  and  sound  judgment ; 
for,  had  not  Lord  Sydney  been  fully  impressed  with 
his  ability,  he  would  hardly  have  so  unhesitatingly 
selected  him  as  the  most  fitting  person  for  a  service  of 
so  complicated  a  nature  on  which  so  much  depended. 

Phillip  was  no  sooner  appointed  Governor  of  the 
proposed  settlement  than  he  began  to  take  a  very 
active  part  in  the  preparations  for  the  expedition. 
He  soon  saw  that  the  arrangements  made  by  the  sub- 
ordinate officials  of  the  Admiralty  were  in  almost  every 
branch  lamentably  incomplete  and  unsatisfactory, 
and,  had  it  not  been  for  his  watchful  care  and  fore- 
thought, and  the  persistency  with  which  he  urged  the 
necessity  of  supplying  different  rations  and  additional 
accommodation  both  for  convicts  and  guards,  it  would 
have  been  impossible  for  the  fleet  to  have  reached  its 
destination  without  terrible  loss  of  life  and  indescrib- 
able suffering  amongst  those  on  board. 

Phillip's  keen  appreciation,  even  at  this  early  stage, 
of  all  the  dangers  to  be  expected  on  the  voyage,  and 
the  administrative  difficulties  to  be  provided  for  and 
avoided  on  arriving  at  his  destination,  mark  him  out 
as  a  man  of  great  capacity  as  well  as  the  possessor 
of  genuine  humane  sympathy.  His  idea  of  the  proper 
mode  of  procedure  is  shown  in  a  memorandum  written 
soon  after  his  appointment.  He  urged  strongly  the 


22  "  THE   FIRST  FLEET"    1788. 

advisability  of  sending  some  ship  with  mechanics 
and  others  ahead  of  the  transports  to  make  pre- 
parations for  the  convicts  :  "  By  arriving  at  the  settle- 
ment two  or  three  months  before  the  transports, 
many  and  very  great  advantages  would  be  gained. 
Huts  would  be  ready  to  receive  the  convicts  who  are 
sick,  and  they  would  find  vegetables,  of  which  it  may 
naturally  be  supposed  they  will  stand  in  great  need,  as 
the  scurvy  must  make  a  great  ravage  amongst  people 
naturally  indolent  and  not  cleanly.  Huts  would  be 
ready  for  the  women  ;  the  stores  would  be  properly 
lodged  and  defended  from  the  convicts,  in  such 
manner  as  to  prevent  their  making  any  attempt  on 
them.  The  cattle  and  stock  would  be  likewise 
properly  secured,  and  the  ground  marked  out  for 
the  convicts  ;  for  lists  of  those  intended  to  be  sent 
being  given  to  the  commanding  officers,  mentioning 
their  age,  crimes,  trades,  and  character,  they  might  be 
so  divided  as  to  render  few  changes  necessary,  and 
the  provisions  would  be  ready  for  issuing  without 
any  waste.  But  if  convicts,  provisions,  &c.,  must  be 
landed  a  fe\v  days  after  the  ship's  arrival,  and  con- 
sequently nearly  at  the  same  time,  great  incon- 
venience will  arise  ;  and  to  keep  the  convicts  more 
than  a  few  days  on  board,  after  they  get  into  a  port, 
considering  the  length  of  time  which  they  must 
inevitably  be  confined,  may  be  attended  with  con- 
sequences easier  to  conceive  than  to  point  out  in  a 
letter.  Add  to  this,  fevers  of  a  malignant  kind  may 
make  it  necessary  to  have  a  second  hospital." 

"A  ship's  company  is  landed,  huts  raised,  and  the 
sick  provided  for   in  a  couple  of  days  ;  but  here  the 


ARRANGEMENTS  FOR  THE  COLONY.      23 

greater  number  are  convicts,  in  whom  no  confidence 
can  be  placed,  and  against  whom  both  person  and 
provisions  are  to  be  guarded.  Everything  necessary 
for  the  settlement  would  be  received  at  the  Cape  on 
board  by  the  commanding  officer,  and  nothing  left 
for  the  transports  but  a  certain  proportion  of  live 
stock.  .  .  . 

"  The  women  in  general,  I  should  suppose,  possess 
neither  virtue  nor  honesty.  But  there  may  be  some 
for  theft  who  still  retain  some  degree  of  virtue,  and 
these  should  be  permitted  to  keep  together,  and  strict 
orders  to  the  master  of  the  transport  be  given  that 
they  are  not  abused  and  insulted  by  the  ship's  com- 
pany— which  is  said  to  have  been  the  case  too  often 
when  they  were  sent  to  America.  .  .  . 

"  I  shall  think  it  a  great  point  gained  if  I  can  proceed 
in  this  business  without  having  any  dispute  with  the 
natives,  a  few  of  which  I  shall  endeavour  to  persuade 
to  settle  near  us,  whom  I  mean  to  furnish  with 
everything  that  can  tend  to  civilise  them,  and  to  give 
them  a  high  opinion  of  their  new  guests  ;  for  which 
purpose  it  will  be  necessary  to  prevent  the  transports' 
crews  from  having  any  intercourse  with  the  natives, 
if  possible.  The  convicts  must  have  none,  for  if  they 
have,  the  arms  of  the  natives  will  be  very  formidable 
in  their  hands.  .  .  . 

"Rewarding  and  punishing  must  be  left  to  the 
Governor  ;  he  will  likely  be  answerable  for  his 
conduct,  and  death,  I  should  think,  will  never  be 
necessary.  In  fact,  I  doubt  if  the  fear  of  death  ever 
prevented  a  man  of  no  principle  from  committing  a 
bad  action  There  are  two  crimes  that  would  merit 


24  'THE  FIRST  FLEET,"  1788. 

death  ;  for  either  of  these  crimes  I  should  wish  to 
confine  the  criminal  till  an  opportunity  offered  of 
delivering  him  as  a  prisoner  to  the  natives  of  New 
Zealand  and  let  them  eat  him.  The  dread  of  this  will 
operate  much  stronger  than  the  fear  of  death.  .  .  . 

•  "  Women  may  be  brought  from  the  Friendly  and 
other  islands,  a  proper  place  prepared  to  receive 
them,  and  where  they  will  be  supported  for  a  time 
and  lots  of  land  assigned  to  such  as  marry  with 
the  soldiers  of  the  garrison. 

"  As  I  would  not  wish  convicts  to  lay  the  foundations 
of  an  empire,  I  think  they  should  ever  remain  separate 
from  the  garrison  and  other  settlers  that  may  come 
from  Europe,  and  not  be  allowed  to  mix  with  them, 
even  after  the  seven  or  fourteen  years  for  which  they 
are  transported  may  be  expired. 

"  The  laws  of  this  country  will,  of  course,  be  intro- 
duced in  New  South  Wales,  and  there  is  one  I  would 
wish  to  take  place  from  the  moment  His  Majesty's 
forces  take  possession  of  the  country — that  there  be 
no  slavery  in  a  free  land,  and  consequently  no  slaves." 

In  addition  to  the  general  organisation  Phillip  had 
to  attend  to  the  most  minute  details.  Numerous  com- 
munications passed  between  him  and  various  officials 
with  regard  to  the  quantity  and  quality  of  articles 
provided  as  rations,  the  necessity  of  overseers  to  look 
after  the  convicts,  the  filthy  condition  in  which  the 
women  were  sent  on  board  the  ships,  the  insufficient 
number  of  scythes  and  razors  supplied,  the  lack  of 
drugs  and  surgical  instruments,  the  insecurity  of  the 
hatches  in  the  transports,  the  supply  of  grog  for  the 
soldiers,  clothing  for  the  women,  and  the  terrible  over- 


INCOMPLETENESS  OF  ARRANGEMENTS.       25 

crowding  on  board  some  of  the  vessels.  In  addition  to 
the  innumerable  details  which  required  attention,  in- 
structions to  guide  his  action  in  a  hundred  imaginary 
emergencies  were  necessary.  .Letter  after  letter  had 
to  be  written  before  abuses  were  remedied  or  instruc- 
tions received,  while  many  matters  which  Phillip 
deemed  essential  to  the  health  and  safety  of  his 
charges  were  never  attended  to  at  all  in  spite  of 
his  frequent  remonstrances.  At  last  Phillip's  patience 
seems  to  have  almost  given  way,  and  in  March  he 
wrote  as  follows  to  Lord  Sydney:  "As  the  Navy 
Board  have  informed  me  that  no  alteration  can 
be  made  respecting  the  victualling  of  the  marines 
during  the  passage,  it  is  to  prevent  my  character 
as  an  officer  from  being  called  in  question,  should 
the  consequences  I  fear  be  realised,  that  I  once  more 
trouble  your  lordship  on  this  subject.  ...  I  see  the 
critical  situation  I  may  be  in  after  losing  part  of  the 
garrison,  that  is  at  present  very  weak,  when  the 
service  for  which  it  is  intended  is  considered;  but  I 
am  prepared  to  meet  difficulties,  and  I  have  only 
one  fear.  I  fear,  my  lord,  that  it  may  be  said  here- 
after, the  officer  who  took  charge  of  the  expedition 
should  have  known  that  it  was  more  than  probable 
he  lost  half  the  garrison  and  convicts  crowded  and 
victualled  in  such  a  manner  for  so  long  a  voyage. 
And  the  public,  believing  it  rested  with  me,  may 
impute  to  my  ignorance  or  inattention  what  I  have 
never  been  consulted  in,  and  which  never  coincided 
with  my  ideas,  to  avoid  which  is  the  purport  of  this 
letter  ;  and  I  flatter  myself  your  lordship  will  here- 
after point  out  the  situation  in  which  I  have  stood 


26  "  THE   FIRST  FLEET,'*    1788. 

through  the  whole  of  this  business,  should  it  ever  be 
necessary."  Again,  a  little  later,  after  a  still  more 
emphatic  protest  to  the  Under-Secretary,  he  wrote, 
"These  complaints,  my  dear  sir,  do  not  come  unex- 
pected, nor  were  they  unavoidable.  I  foresaw  them 
from  the  beginning,  and  repeatedly  pointed  them  out, 
when  they  might  have  been  so  easily  prevented  at 
a  very  small  expense,  and  with  little  trouble  to 
those  who  have  had  the  conducting  of  this  business. 
At  present  the  evils  complained  of  may  be  re- 
dressed, and  the  intentions  of  Government  by  this 
expedition  answered.  But  if  now  neglected  it  may 
be  too  late  hereafter,  and  we  may  expect  to  see  the 
seamen  belonging  to  the  transports  run  from  the 
ships  to  avoid  a  jail  distemper,  and  may  be  refused 
entrance  into  a  foreign  port."  At  last  the  arrange- 
ments were  as  complete  as  they  appeared  likely  ever 
to  be,  and  on  the  i  ith  of  May  Phillip  sat  down  in  his 
cabin  in  the  H.M.S.  Sirius,  then  lying  off  the  Mother- 
bank,  to  pen  a  few  last  lines  to  Nepean,  the  Under- 
secretary. To  a  man  of  Phillip's  temperament  the 
feeling  that  he  was  on  the  eve  of  a  great  enterprise 
was  fully  present,  and  in  the  concluding  lines  of  this 
letter  a  glimpse  is  given  of  some  of  his  dreams  of  the 
future.  "  Once  more,"  he  wrote,  "  I  take  my  leave  of 
you,  fully  sensible  of  the  trouble  you  have  had  in  this 
business,  for  which  at  present  I  can  only  thank  you  ; 
but  at  a  future  period,  when  this  country  feels  the 
advantages  that  are  to  be  drawn  from  our  intended 
settlement,  you  will  enjoy  a  satisfaction  that  will,  I 
am  sure,  make  you  ample  amends."  In  these 
moments  of  comparative  rest  when  he  had  done  all 


FIRST  FLEET"  SETS  SAIL.  27 

that  lay  in  his  power  to  ensure  the  success  of  the 
expedition,  the  consciousness  that  he  was  destined  to 
found  a  great  nation  and  not  simply  a  distant  gaol  is 
again  apparent.  On  the  I3th  of  May  the  little  fleet 
weighed  anchor  and  started  down  Channel.  It  con- 
sisted of  the  vessels  contained  in  the  table  on  p.  28. 
These  with  the  Sirius  and  Supply  made  up  the  fleet. 
On  the  first-named  there  were  a  few  marines  and  the 
governor  belonging  to  the  establishment,  in  addition 
to  her  own  complement.  H.M.S.  Hycena,  a  frigate, 
accompanied  them  some  way,  returning  with  a  final 
despatch  from  Phillip  when  they  were  well  clear  of  the 
narrow  waters.  All  was  then  going  well,  but  the 
Provost- Marshal  and  the  women's  clothing  had  been 
left  behind,  and  the  Charlotte  and  Lady  PenrJiyn 
sailed  very  badly.  A  conspiracy  amongst  the 
convicts  on  the  Scarborough  had  been  discovered  and 
promptly  suppressed,  and  to  use  Phillip's  words,  "the 
clearing  the  Channel  is  one  great  point  gained,  and 
with  which  I  looked  upon  all  our  difficulty  as  ended." 
The  ships  reached  Santa  Cruz,  Teneriffe,  on  the  3rd 
of  June  and  here  Phillip  held  his  first  inspection  of  the 
convicts.  "  I  saw  them  all  yesterday  for  the  first 
time,"  he  writes,  "  they  are  quiet  and  contented, 
though  there  arc  among  them  some  complete  villains." 
A  plentiful  supply  of  fresh  provisions  was  taken  in, 
and  without  delay  sail  made  for  Rio  de  Janiero,  where 
they  arrived  on  the  5th  of  August.  Phillip  must  have 
suffered  some  anxiety  concerning  his  reception  at 
Rio,  for  fresh  provisions  were  very  necessary  in  order 
to  preserve  the  health  of  his  charges,  and  any 
opposition  on  the  part  of  the  Portuguese  Viceroy 


28 


"  THE   FIRST  FLEET?    1788. 


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AMMUNITION   PURCHASED.  2Q 

would  have  produced  serious  results.  All  apprehen- 
sions were,  however,  soon  set  at  rest  and  the  Portu- 
guese showed  their  visitors  every  civility,  while  the 
Viceroy  treated  Phillip  and  his  officers  with  extra- 
ordinary attention  and  honour.  A  supply  of  fresh 
food  was  obtained  and  a  considerable  quantity  of 
spirits  purchased  ;  indeed,  rum  rose  25  per  cent,  in 
price  owing  to  the  unusual  demand.  Here  also 
Phillip  seized  the  opportunity  of  remedying  a  remark- 
able omission  in  the  preparations  for  the  expedition. 
No  ammunition  of  any  sort  had  been  provided  for  the 
marines,  so  that,  had  a  rising  among  the  convicts 
occurred  on  the  voyage  to  Rio,  the  firearms  of  the 
guards  would  have  been  useless  ;  "ten  thousand 
musquet  balls  "  were  purchased  from  the  king's  stores, 
fruit-trees  and  plants  were  obtained,  and  on  the 
4th  of  September  the  voyage  was  resumed.  Phillip's 
knowledge  of  Spanish  at  once  established  most 
friendly  relations  with  the  Rio  officials,  and  the 
success  of  the  visit  was  mainly  due  to  his  tact  and 
courtesy.  On  the  arrival  of  the  fleet  at  the  Cape 
much  trouble  was  at  first  experienced  in  obtaining 
permission  from  the  Government  to  purchase  what 
was  required,  and  on  this  account  another  month  was 
lost.  Eventually  all  that  Phillip  asked  was  granted 
and  the  ships  took  more  plants  and  seeds  aboard  and 
some  live  stock  ;  but  prices  were  higher  than  was 
expected  and  the  space  available  on  the  vessels  very 
limited.  On  the  I2th  of  November  sail  was  set,  and 
about  a  fortnight  later  the  Governor,  leaving  the  Sirius, 
and  embarking  on  the  Supply,  made  every  effort  to 
push  on  in  order  to  select  the  site  for  the  new  settle- 


30  "  THE   FIRST  FLEET,"    1788. 

ment  and  make  certain  preparations  for  the  reception 
of  the  stores  and  convicts  before  the  arrival  of  the 
transports.  The  three  fastest  of  the  transports  were 
directed  to  follow  with  all  despatch  and  Captain 
Hunter,  of  the  Sirius,  was  left  in  charge  of  the  re- 
maining ships.  On  the  3rd  of  January  the  coast  of 
New  South  Wales  was  sighted  from  the  Supply,  but 
owing  to  contrary  winds  Botany  Bay  was  not  reached 
till  the  1 8th.  The  Alexander,  Scarborough,  and 
FriendsJiip  came  in  next  day,  and  the  Sirius  with  the 
rest  of  the  ships  the  day  after.  Directly  he  entered 
the  Bay  Phillip  looked  about  for  some  suitable  place 
for  the  settlement,  but  he  "  did  not  see  any  situation 
to  which  there  was  not  some  very  strong  objection 
while  the  anchorage  in  the  bay  was  exposed  to  the 
eastward,  and  the  shores  were  very  shallow."  So 
unfavourable  did  the  surrounding  country  appear  to 
be  that  it  was  determined  to  search  without  delay  for 
a  better  site  "  higher  up  the  coast,"  but  that  no  time 
might  be  lost  if  he  did  not  succeed  in  finding  a  better 
harbour  and  a  proper  situation  for  the  settlement, 
Phillip  instructed  the  Lieutenant-Govcrnor,  Major 
Ross,  "  to  at  once  proceed  to  clear  the  land  and 
prepare  for  disembarkation."  Captain  Hunter  and 
several  officers  went  with  Phillip  on  his  exploring 
expedition  in  three  boats  so  that  the  examination 
might  be  conducted  as  rapidly  as  possible.  The  relief 
and  joy  felt  by  this  little  band  as  they  entered  Sydney 
Heads  and  saw  the  peaceful  waters  of  Port  Jackson 
spreading  before  them  in  innumerable  bays  and  coves 
with  yellow  sandy  shores  and  rocky  points  may  be 
easily  imagined.  To  Phillip's  eye  here  was  a  harbour 


SYDNEY  COVE   SELECTED   FOR   LANDING.        31 

indeed — "  We  got  into  Port  Jackson  early  in  the  after- 
noon," he  wrote  to  Lord  Sydney,  "  and  had  the  satis- 
faction of  finding  the  finest  harbour  in  the  world,  in 
which  a  thousand  sail  of  the  line  may  ride  in  the  most 
perfect  security."  All  the  coves  were  examined  in 
order  to  find  the  spot  most  suitable  for  landing,  and 
one  was  selected  "  that  had  the  best  spring  of  water, 
and  in  which  the  ships  can  anchor  so  close  to  the 
shore,  that  at  a  very  small  expense  quays  may  be 
made  at  which  the  largest  ships  may  unload."  On  the 
third  day  Phillip  returned  to  Botany  Bay  to  find  Ross 
disgusted  with  the  country  and  every  one  depressed. 
Preparations  were  immediately  made  to  go  round  to 
Sydney  Cove,  but  before  the  start  an  incident  oc- 
curred which  created  no  small  amount  of  excitement. 
The  account  given  by  Trench,  an  officer  of  marines, 
so  well  describes  the  feelings  of  astonishment  on  board 
the  transports  in  Botany  Bay  when  two  strange  sail 
suddenly  appeared  on  the  horizon,  that  it  is  worth 
quoting  at  length.  "  The  thoughts  of  removal  (from 
Botany  Bay  to  Port  Jackson)  banished  sleep,  so  that 
I  rose  at  the  first  dawn  of  the  morning.  But  judge  of 
my  surprise  on  hearing  from  a  sergeant,  who  ran  down 
almost  breathless  to  the  cabin  where  I  was  dressing, 
that  a  ship  was  seen  off  the  harbour's  mouth  !  At 
first  I  only  laughed,  but  knowing  the  man  who  spoke 
to  me  to  be  of  great  veracity,  and  hearing  him  repeat 
his  information,  I  flew  upon  deck,  on  which  I  had 
barely  set  my  foot,  when  the  cry  of  '  another  sail ' 
struck  on  my  astonished  ear.  Confounded  by  a 
thousand  ideas  which  arose  in  my  mind  in  an  instant, 
I  sprang  upon  the  barricade,  and  plainly  descried  two 


32  "  THE  FIRST   FLEET,"    1788. 

ships  of  considerable  size  standing  in  for  the  mouth 
of  the  bay."  The  two  sail  turned  out  to  be  the 
Boussole  and  Astrolabe,  under  La  Perouse,  on  a 
voyage  of  discovery.  The  officers  exchanged  civilities, 
and  La  Perouse  left  in  charge  of  the  Englishmen,  for 
transmission  to  Europe,  the  last  letters  and  despatches 
which  he  wrote  before  his  untimely  death.  Directly 
some  of  the  transports  came  round  to  Sydney  Cove, 
as  Phillip  called  the  spot  he  had  chosen,  a  start  was 
made  at  clearing  the  ground.  On  the  26th  of  January, 
1788,  the  British  flag  was  unfurled  at  the  head  of  the 
bay.  Toasts  of  the  King,  the  Royal  Family,  and 
success  to  the  new  Colony  were  honoured,  volleys 
were  fired  by  the  marines,  and  in  the  evening  the 
remaining  ships  arrived  from  Botany. 


NEW   SOUTH    WALES. 
III. 


BOTANY      BAY. 
(1788-1792.) 

THE  erection  of  stores  for  the  provisions  and 
shelter  for  the  convicts  and  marines  was  vigorously 
pushed  on.  On  the  7th  of  July  all  the  people  had 
been  landed  from  the  ships  and  the  formal  inaugu- 
ration of  the  colony  took  place.  The  whole  of  the 
little  community  assembled  on  the  slope  of  Point 
Maskelyne,  now  known  as  Dawe's  Point,  and 
Phillip's  commission  and  the  other  documents  estab- 
lishing the  Government  were  read  by  the  Judge- 
Advocate.  The  Governor  then  addressed  a  few  words 
to  the  convicts  with  regard  to  the  future.  He  assured 
them  that  he  would  do  all  in  his  power  to  render 
those  happy  who  led  orderly  lives  and  showed  a 
disposition  to  amendment,  but  he  held  out  no  hope 
of  mercy  to  any  who  continued  in  evil  courses  or 
transgressed  the  law  or  regulations  of  the  colony. 

After  the  ceremony  every  one  turned  their  atten- 
4  3? 


LIEUT.   KING    SENT    TO   NORFOLK  ISLAND.  35 

tion  to  clearing  the  land  and  erecting  dwellings  ;  but 
the  task  proved  a  difficult  one,  for  the  surrounding 
country  was  extremely  rocky  and  heavily  timbered. 

"  The  scene,  to  an  indifferent  spectator  at  leisure  to 
contemplate  it,  would  have  been  highly  picturesque 
and  amusing,"  wrote  an  eye-witness  ;  "  in  one  place, 
a  party  cutting  down  the  woods  ;  a  second,  setting 
up  a  blacksmith's  forge  ;  a  third,  dragging  along  a 
load  of  stones  or  provisions  ;  here  an  officer  pitching 
his  marquee,  with  a  detachment  of  troops  parading 
on  one  side  of  him  and  a  cook's  fire  blazing  up  on 
the  other."  Phillip  had  been  instructed  to  imme- 
diately occupy  Norfolk  Island,  so  a  week  after  the 
inauguration  Lieut.  Phillip  Gidley  King  was  de- 
spatched in  the  Supply  with  fifteen  men,  nine  of 
whom  were  convicts,  and  six  convict  women. 

It  was  most  necessary  that  no  time  should  be  lost 
in  planting  the  seeds  and  shrubs  obtained  at  Rio  and 
the  Cape,  since,  if  any  misfortune  were  to  overtake  one 
of  the  store-ships  from  England,  the  safety  of  the  colony 
might  before  long  depend  on  the  local  crops.  But 
Phillip,  when  he  tried  to  cultivate  the  land,  found  that 
there  was  no  one  who  understood  anything  of  garden- 
ing or  farming  except  his  own  servant,  and  much 
of  the  precious  seed  was  lost  in  efforts  to  learn  by 
experience.  The  agricultural  implements  supplied 
were  very  inadequate,  and  it  soon  became  clear  that, 
if  any  good  results  were  to  be  obtained,  it  could  only 
be  by  the  arrival  of  some  free  settlers  skilled  in 
agricultural  pursuits.  Even  before  all  the  stores 
were  out  of  the  ship  the  Governor  wrote  :  "  If  fifty 
farmers  were  sent  out  with  their  families,  they  would 


36  BOTANY  BAY. 

do  more  in  one  year  in  rendering  this  colony  inde- 
pendent of  the  Mother  Country  as  to  provisions  than 
a  thousand  convicts." 

Within  a  month  of  landing,  attempts  to  rob  the 
public  stores  of  the  very  limited  stock  of  provisions 
which  they  contained  called  for  prompt  and  severe 
treatment,  and  an  execution  took  place.  The  ill 
success  met  with  in  farming  caused  the  shadow  of 
famine  to  hover  over  the  settlement  from  the  com- 
mencement, and  the  stores  had  to  be  zealously 
guarded,  for  in  spite  of  every  effort  it  seemed  im- 
possible to  render  the  colony  self-supporting  with 
the  materials  to  hand.  A  couple  of  years  later 
Phillip  again  wrote  :  "  Experience  has  taught  me 
how  difficult  it  is  to  make  men  industrious  who 
have  passed  their  lives  in  habits  of  vice  and  indo- 
lence. In  some  cases  it  has  been  found  impossible ; 
neither  kindness  nor  severity  have  had  any  effect. 
There  are  many  who  dread  punishment  less  than 
they  fear  labour."  The  discontent  of  the  convicts 
was  increased  by  a  curious  omission  on  the  part  of 
the  officials  in  England.  Phillip  had  been  supplied 
with  no  papers  stating  the  dates  of  expiration  of 
sentences,  so  that  when  men  claimed  to  have  served 
their  time  he  could  not  release  them  without  refer- 
ring home.  In  some  cases  grants  of  land  were  made 
to  be  confirmed  if  the  claim  proved  true,  while  severe 
punishment  was  threatened  in  any  case  of  imposition. 
The  helplessness  of  Phillip's  position  was  aggravated 
by  the  military,  for  no  assistance  was  received  from 
Major  Ross,  the  Lieutenant-Governor,  who,  instead  of 
aiding,  used  every  opportunity  of  embarrassing  Phillip 


EXPLORATION   OP   THE   COUNTRY.  37 

or  rendering  his  efforts  at  reform  and  harmony 
nugatory.  Phillip  had  hoped  much  from  the  moral 
influence  of  the  military  on  the  convicts,  but  he  was 
bitterly  disappointed.  He  expressed  a  wish  soon 
after  landing  "  that  officers  would,  when  they  saw 
the  convicts  diligent,  say  a  few  words  of  encourage- 
ment to  them,  and  that  when  they  saw  them  idle 
or  met  them  straggling  in  the  woods  they  would 
threaten  them  with  punishment  ; "  but  he  was 
promptly  informed  that  "they  declined  the  least 
interference  with  the  convicts."  During  the  whole 
of  Phillip's  tenure  of  office  the  military  were  a  thorn 
in  his  side,  and,  had  he  not  been  possessed  of  enor- 
mous self-control,  matters  must,  at  an  early  stage, 
have  reached  a  crisis  which  might  have  been  fatal  to 
the  prospects  of  the  colony. 

As  soon  as  things  were  fairly  in  progress  at  Sydney 
Cove  the  Governor  commenced  a  series  of  expedi- 
tions into  the  surrounding  country,  chiefly  in  the 
hope  of  finding  better  arable  land  than  was  to  be 
got  near  the  harbour.  He  first  went  to  Broken  Bay 
and  Pittwater,  and  was  much  impressed  with  the  fine 
scenery,  but  unfortunately,  while  sleeping  on  the  wet 
ground,  he  contracted  an  illness  which  proved  a  con- 
tinual source  of  pain  and  eventually  compelled  him 
to  return  to  England.^ 

On  his  second  trip,  taken  shortly  afterwards,  he 
discovered  Lake  Narabeen,  and  a  week  later  made 
his  first  attempt  to  reach  the  Blue  Mountains.  On 
the  journey  some  good  country  suitable  for  farming 
operations  was  found,  but  the  mountains  could  not 
be  reached  owing  to  lack  of  provisions.  The  chief 


38  &OTANY  BAY. 

result  of  these  explorations  was  the  establishment  of 
a  farm  at  the  head  of  the  harbour,  where  "  the  soil 
was  of  a  stiff  clayey  nature,  free  from  that  rock  which 
everywhere  covered  the  surface  of  Sydney  Cove." 

Much  of  the  seed  brought  in  the  ships  had  been 
heated  and  otherwise  spoilt,  and  the  live  stock  had 
also  met  with  serious  mishaps.  Before  long  the 
Governor  was  filled  with  apprehensions  in  regard  to 
the  food  supply.  It  was  apparent  that  at  the  present 
rate  of  progress  the  colony  must  long  be  entirely 
dependent  on  provisions  from  England,  and  Phillip 
could  not  but  tremble  when  he  thought  of  the 
numerous  dangers  besetting  ships  sailing  in  the 
unexplored  waters  which  surrounded  him  and  the 
terrible  consequences  which  any  misfortune  to  a 
store-ship  would  entail.  Ross,  in  whom  Phillip  in 
these  difficulties  should  have  found  a  counsellor  and 
friend,  soon  developed  into  an  open  foe,  and  dis- 
played a  personal  animosity  which  entirely  oblite- 
rated any  sense  of  duty  and  responsibility  which  he 
may  have  originally  possessed.  One  of  his  first  acts 
was  to  endeavour  to  persuade  the  officers  of  the 
marines  to  refuse  to  sit  on  the  criminal  court,  a  duty 
imposed  on  them  by  a  special  Act  of  Parliament. 
Fortunately  the  subordinates  had  more  discretion 
than  their  commandant,  and  declined  to  be  made 
tools  of  his  spleen  against  the  Governor  ;  but,  had 
this  not  been  the  case,  the  colony  for  some  time 
would  have  been  left  without  any  means  of  legally 
punishing  offenders — a  situation  the  gravity  of  which 
is  obvious  in  a  society  threatened  with  starvation 
and  mainly  composed  of  persons  who  had  already 


PHILLIP  AND   ROSS.  .    39 

transgressed  the  law.  Doubtless  their  refusal  to 
support  the  quibbles  of  Ross  strained  the  relations 
existing  between  him  and  his  subordinates,  for  before 
long  he  took  the  remarkable  step  of  placing  the 
whole  of  the  members  of  a  court-martial  under  arrest 
for  declining  to  alter  at  his  command  a  sentence 
inflicted  by  them.  This  action  again  placed  Phillip 
in  a  difficult  predicament ;  for,  unless  he  took  every 
officer  from  his  duty,  it  was  impossible  to  assemble  a 
court  to  try  the  case.  The  Governor,  therefore,  offered 
a  court  of  inquiry  instead  of  a  general  court-martial, 
but  this  the  officers  concerned  refused,  demanding 
either  a  proper  trial  or  a  public  apology  for  their 
arrest.  The  only  way  out  of  the  dilemma  was  for 
the  Governor  to  order  the  officers  back  to  their  duty 
until  a  court  -  martial  could  be  assembled,  a  step 
which  practically  closed  the  incident ;  but  the  fact 
of  subalterns  demanding  an  apology  from  their  com- 
manding officer  was  scarcely  an  encouraging  aspect 
of  discipline  in  the  regiment.  Phillip  had  been 
instructed  "  by  every  possible  means  to  open  an 
intercourse  with  the  natives  and  to  conciliate  their 
affections,"  and  his  policy  from  the  commencement 
was  characterised  by  a  desire  to  inspire  them  with 
confidence.  On  all  occasions  when  he  personally 
came  in  contact  with  them  his  address,  combining 
courage  and  firmness  with  a  fine  sense  of  the  natives' 
rights,  produced  the  most  pleasing  effect  ;  but  all  the 
good  done  by  the  Governor  was  undone  by  the 
convicts  and  marines,  who  wantonly  destroyed  the 
canoes  and  other  property  which  the  natives  left  on 
the  shore  and  in  many  ways  provoked  acts  of  re- 


40  BOTANY  BAY. 

taliation  which  not  infrequently  ended  in  loss  of  life. 
Ill-treatment  of  the  natives  by  the  colonists,  when 
detected,  met  with  severe  punishment,  but  in  spite  of 
every  precaution  outrages  by  one  class  or  the  other 
were  of  frequent  occurrence.  Phillip,  seeing  the 
necessity  of  an  interpreter,  if  friendly  intercourse 
was  to  be  established,  secured  a  young  aboriginal 
man,  named  Arabanoo,  in  December,  1788,  and  took 
much  pains  to  instruct  him  in  the  language  and 
customs  of  the  white  men.  This  experiment  was 
promising  to  be  successful  when  Arabanoo  died  from 
small-pox.  Two  other  natives,  named  Bennilong  and 
Colebe,  were  afterwards  captured,  and  they  on  many 
occasions  acted  as  intermediaries  between  the  blacks 
and  the  new-comers.  Although  Phillip  was  often  in 
positions  of  very  great  danger  from  attacks  of  the 
natives,  the  apparent  absence  of  all  fear  and  the 
remarkable  tact  which  he  displayed  saved  him,  and 
only  once  did  he  meet  with  any  mishap  at  their 
hands.  On  this  occasion  a  native,  to  whom  he  had 
been  introduced  by  Bennilong,  misunderstanding  his 
friendly  advances  and  thinking  that  Phillip  intended 
to  seize  him  as  Bennilong  had  before  been  seized, 
threw  his  spear,  which  entered  above  Phillip's  collar- 
bone, the  barb  passing  out  at  his  back.  The  wound 
proved  not  to  be  so  serious  as  it  at  first  sight  ap- 
peared, and  in  ten  days  the  Governor  was  about 
again,  and  made  another  visit  to  the  tribe  of  the 
aggressor,  in  order  to  show  that  he  felt  no  ill-will. 

Although  the  convicts  had  been  landed  in  better 
health  than  the  most  sanguine  could  have  hoped, 
sickness  broke  out  soon  after  they  were  on  shore, 


ATTEMPT   TO   CIVILISE   NATIVES.  4! 

and  scurvy  and  dysentery  greatly  weakened  the 
effective  strength  of  the  settlement.  The  number 
of  unproductive  consumers  was  day  by  day  grow- 
ing more  out  of  proportion  to  the  producers,  and 
the  food  question  assumed  a  very  serious  aspect. 
Rations  were  reduced,  and  the  Sirius,  leaving  behind 
guns  and  everything  she  could  dispense  with,  in  order 
to  make  more  room,  was  despatched  to  the  Cape, 
the  Supply  being  sent  at  the  same  time  to  Batavia 
for  provisions.  After  a  lengthy  voyage  the  Sirius 
returned,  "every  officer's  department  and  all  the 
store-rooms  being  completely  filled  ; "  but  even  then 
the  food  she  brought  could  not  postpone  the  impend- 
ing disaster  for  more  than  a  few  weeks.  Numerous 
attempts  were  made  by  convicts  to  escape  from  the 
settlement :  some  started  to  walk  to  China,  which 
they  imagined  to  be  only  150  miles  distant  ;  others 
wandered  away  into  the  bush  and  were  never  heard 
of  again  ;  while  a  few  seized  boats  and  put  to  sea. 

The  most  successful  of  these  latter  was  a  man 
named  Bryant,  who,  in  a  fishing-boat,  sailed,  with  his 
wife  and  two  children — one  of  whom  was  an  infant — 
and  seven  convicts,  and  arrived  safely  at  Timor. 
Owing  to  want  of  discretion  on  the  part  of  some  of 
the  convicts,  their  identity  was  discovered,  and  the 
Dutch  Governor  handed  them  over  to  the  captain 
of  H.M.S.  Pandora,  who  was  at  that  time  in  port. 
Crime — more  especially  robberies  of  food,  both  by  the 
soldiers  and  convicts — increased  with  the  decrease  of 
the  food  allowance,  and  executions  and  other  punish- 
ments occurred  with  appalling  frequency.  The  abso- 
lute necessity  of  protecting  the  public  stores  and  the 


42  BOTANY  BAY. 

little  vegetable  gardens  of  the  settlers  was  apparent 
to  every  one  but  Ross,  who  seized  the  opportunity 
afforded  by  the  arrest  of  a  soldier  by  the  night  watch 
for  robbing  a  garden  to  make  one  more  attempt  to 
embarrass  the  Governor.  Ross  even  went  so  far  as 
to  advise  his  men  to  use  their  bayonets  to  protect 
themselves  when  molested  in  their  predatory  expedi- 
tions. 

At  last  resources  became  so  low,  that  it  was  deter- 
mined to  send  a  further  detachment  to  Norfolk  Island, 
under  Major  Ross,  who  was  appointed  Lieutenant- 
Governor  in  succession  to  King,  to  relieve  the  main 
settlement  of  some  of  the  mouths  to  be  filled,  em- 
ploying the  services  of  King  as  a  special  envoy  to 
England  to  lay  before  the  Government  more  forcibly 
than  could  be  done  in  any  despatches  the  desperate 
straits  to  which  the  settlement  had  been  reduced,  in 
the  matter  of  food  as  well  as  the  various  reforms  in  the 
Government  and  military  which  were  so  urgently 
needed.  The  Sirius  and  Supply  sailed  with  Ross 
and  a  large  body  of  marines  and  convicts,  provided 
as  well  with  stores.  Norfolk  Island  was  reached 
safely,  and  the  passengers  landed  ;  but  while  dis- 
charging the  cargo,  the  Sirius  drifted  on  a  reef  and 
became  a  total  wreck. 

The  intention  had  been  to  proceed  to  China  for 
provisions,  taking  King,  who  was  to  have  made  his 
way  thence  to  England  ;  after  the  wreck,  however, 
King  at  once  returned  to  Sydney  in  the  Supply. 

At  headquarters  matters  were  gradually  going  from 
bad  to  worse.  The  fleet  had  left  England  with  two 
years'  supply  of  provisions,  and  although  next  to 


SCARCITY   OF  FOOD.  43 

nothing  had  been  obtained  from  the  land,  three  years 
had  already  passed  without  any  additional  support  or 
news  from  home.  The  rations  had  been  so  reduced, 
that  it  was  found  necessary  to  serve  them  "  daily  to 
every  person  in  the  settlement,  without  distinction," 
so  that  it  might  not  be  possible  for  any  one  to  devour 
a  week's  rations  at  one  meal  and  then  starve.  All 
Government  work  had  to  be  stopped,  owing  to  the 
extreme  weakness  of  the  convicts,  and  every  one  was 
occupied  in  procuring  food  by  fishing  or  shooting, 
and  for  this  purpose  all  private  boats  were  pressed 
into  the  public  service.  The  only  hope  of  saving  the 
people  from  starvation  was  to  send  the  little  brig  Supply 
to  Batavia  ;  this  was  therefore  done,  the  commander 
having  instructions  to  there  charter  a  large  ship,  at 
any  price,  and  send  her  to  Sydney  with  provisions. 
Trench,  an  officer  of  marines,  draws  a  graphic  picture 
of  the  terrible  straits  to  which  the  colony  was  re- 
duced :  "  Three  or  four  instances  of  persons  who 
have  perished  from  want  have  been  related  to  me. 
One  only,  however,  fell  within  my  own  observation. 
I  was  passing  the  provision  store,  when  a  man,  with 
a  wild,  haggard  countenance,  who  had  just  received 
his  daily  pittance  to  carry  home,  came  out.  His  fal- 
tering gait,  and  eager,  devouring  eye  led  me  to  watch 
him  ;  and  he  had  not  proceeded  ten  steps  before  he 
fell.  I  ordered  him  to  be  carried  to  the  hospital, 
where,  when  he  arrived,  he  was  found  dead." 

The  one  bright  spot  in  this  scene  of  misery  was 
the  demeanour  of  Phillip.  With  a  patient  endurance, 
he  bore  the  privations  in  common  with  his  meanest 
subject.  Famished  and  in  ill  health,  he  none  the  less 


44  BOTANY  BAY. 

gave  every  thought  to  the  welfare  of  those  under  his 
charge ;  while  the  grievances  which  called  forth 
bitter  lamentations  from  his  subordinates,  he  wrote 
about  as  "  The  little  difficulties  we  have  met  with, 
which  time  and  proper  people  for  cultivating  the  land 
will  remove."  In  the  colony's  darkest  hour  he  never 
swerved  from  the  opinion  "  that  this  country  will 
prove  the  most  valuable  acquisition  Great  Britain  ever 
made."  His  example  was  not  confined  to  words. 
"  The  Governor,  from  a  motive  that  did  him  immortal 
honour,"  wrote  Collins,  "gave  up  three  hundred  weight 
of  flour,  which  was  his  Excellency's  private  property, 
declaring  that  he  wished  not  to  see  anything  more  at 
his  table  than  the  ration  which  was  received  in  common 
from  the  public  store,  without  any  distinction  of  per- 
sons ;  and  to  this  resolution  he  rigidly  adhered,  wish- 
ing that,  if  a  convict  complained,  he  might  see  that 
want  was  not  unfelt  even  at  Government  House." 
Actions  such  as  these  were  not  uncommon  during  his 
rule,  and  they  lost  none  of  their  virtue  from  the  fact 
that  he  always  forgot  to  mention  them  when  writing 
officially  or  privately  to  England. 

A  flagstaff  was  erected  on  the  South  Head,  so  that 
the  appearance  of  any  approaching  sail  could  be  at 
once  made  known  to  the  starving  inhabitants ;  and 
the  following  extract  from  a  letter  to  England  of  one 
of  the  men  stationed  on  the  look-out  brings  home 
the  aching  anxiety  with  which  the  glittering  horizon 
was  watched  for  relief:  "Early  and  late  do  I  look 
with  anxious  eyes  towards  the  sea ;  and  at  times, 
when  the  day  was  fast  setting  and  the  shadows  of  the 
evening  stretched  out,  I  have  been  deceived  with  some 


FULL   RATION   RESTORED.  45 

fantastic  little  cloud,  which,  as  it  condensed  or  ex- 
panded by  such  a  light,  for  a  short  time  has  amused 
impatient  imagination  into  a  momentary  idea  that  it 
was  a  vessel  altering  her  sail  and  position  while  steer- 
ing in  for  the  haven  ;  when,  in  an  instant,  it  has 
assumed  a  form  so  unlike  what  the  mind  was  intent 
upon,  or  has  become  so  greatly  extended,  as  fully 
to  certify  me  of  its  flimsy  texture  and  fleeting 
existence." 

At  last  a  sail  appeared  ;  and  on  the  evening  of 
June  3,  1790,  the  joyful  cry  of  "The  flag's  up  !"  re- 
sounded in  every  direction.  "  I  was  sitting  in  my 
hut,"  wrote  Trench,  "musing  on  our  fate,  when  a  con- 
fused clamour  in  the  street  drew  my  attention.  I 
opened  my  door,  and  saw  several  women,  with  children 
in  their  arms,  running  to  and  fro  with  distracted  looks, 
congratulating  each  other,  and  kissing  their  infants 
with  the  most  passionate  and  extravagant  marks  of 
fondness.  I  needed  no  more,  but  instantly  started 
out  and  ran  to  a  hill,  where,  by  the  assistance  of  my 
pocket-glass,  my  hopes  were  realised.  My  next-door 
neighbour,  a  brother  officer,  was  with  me  ;  but  we 
could  not  speak ;  we  wrung  each  other  by  the  hand, 
with  eyes  and  hearts  overflowing." 

The  vessel  turned  out  to  be  the  Juliana,  with  222 
female  convicts,  for  whom  Philip  had  asked  in  more 
prosperous  times,  in  order  to  render  the  proportion  of 
sexes  in  the  colony  more  equal.  She  also  brought 
some  provisions  and  part  of  the  cargo  of  the  store- 
ship  Guardian,  which  had  been  wrecked  off  the  Cape 
of  Good  Hope  by  collision  with  an  iceberg,  and  the 
loss  of  which  had  been  the  cause  of  the  long  delay  in 


46  BOTANY   BAY. 

arrival  of  help  for  the  colony.  A  few  weeks  after  the 
Juliana,  the  Justinian  storeship  made  the  port,  fol- 
lowed, a  little  later,  by  the  Supply  and  the  vessel 
chartered  in  China ;  so  that  the  full  ration  was 
restored.  But  before  long  three  more  transports 
arrived  full  of  prisoners,  amongst  whom  sickness  and 
pestilence  were  raging.  No  less  than  261  deaths  of 
male  convicts  had  occurred  on  the  passage,  while  488 
persons  were  under  medical  treatment  on  landing, 
and  the  resources  of  the  little  colony  were  taxed  to 
the  utmost. 

Philip  lost  no  time  in  sending  aid  to  the  people  at 
Norfolk  Island,  where  the  sufferings  from  want  of 
food  had  been  almost  as  severe  as  at  Sydney.  The 
settlement  was  saved  by  the  discovery  of  what  the 
sailors  called  mutton  birds — a  species  of  petrel — 
which  alighted  in  thousands  on  the  highest  peak  in 
the  island.  From  two  to  three  thousand  of  these 
birds  were  captured  nightly,  and  for  some  time  they 
formed  the  principal  support  of  the  inhabitants. 

The  first  detachment  of  the  newly-formed  New 
South  Wales  Corps  arrived  in  the  transports,  to  re- 
lieve the  marines  who  had  come  out  with  the  first 
fleet.  This  corps  had  been  raised  by  Major  Grose, 
for  special  service  in  the  settlement,  and  it  was  hoped 
by  the  English  Government  that  the  change  would 
remove  all  the  friction  which  had  so  long  existed 
between  the  civil  and  military  powers.  Ross  was 
recalled  with  the  marines,  for  his  erratic  behaviour 
had  not  met  with  approbation. 

A  few  of  the  men  of  the  marines,  under  Captain- 
Lieutenant  Johnston,  joined  the  new  corps,  which 


FAILURE   OF  PHILLIP'S  HEALTH.  47 

was  to  play  a  very  prominent  part  in  the  later  history 
of  the  colony.  The  very  large  increase  in  the  popu- 
lation, and  the  inability  of  the  greater  proportion  of 
the  new-comers  to  do  any  productive  work,  brought 
the  community  once  more  to  a  state  of  famine.  A 
vessel  was  sent  to  India  to  obtain  supplies;  but  while 
waiting  for  her  return,  rations  were  cut  down  to  the 
smallest  amount  which  would  keep  body  and  soul 
together.  The  extremities  to  which  the  colony  was 
reduced  may  be  gathered  from  a  letter  written  by 
Phillip  to  King,  in  which  he  says  that,  "  When  the 
Atlantic  arrived,  we  had  only  thirteen  days'  flour  and 
forty- five  days  of  maize  in  store,  at  i^  Ib.  flour  and 
4g-  Ib.  maize  per  man  for  seven  days." 

King  had  returned  towards  the  close  of  1791  from 
his  mission  to  England,  where  he  had  been  most 
successful,  receiving  promotion  and  being  especially 
appointed  Lieutenant-Governor  of  Norfolk  Island. 

Phillip's  health  gave  way  under  his  arduous  duties, 
and  shortly  after  King's  departure  to  resume  his 
command  at  Norfolk  Island,  the  Governor  asked  to 
be  permitted  to  return  to  England.  Very  reluctantly 
leave  was  granted,  but  the  English  Government 
delayed  appointing  his  successor,  in  the  hopes  of 
persuading  him  to  again  take  up  the  duties  which  he 
had  performed  with  such  signal  success  and  discretion. 
On  the  nth  of  December,  1792,  Phillip  left  the 
colony,  and  Major  Francis  Grose,  the  Commandant 
of  the  New  South  Wales  Corps,  assumed  the  reins  of 
government,  in  virtue  of  his  commission  as  Lieutenant- 
Governor, 


IV. 


THE  CONVICTS  AND   THEIR  GUARDS. 
(1792-1806.) 

WERE  any  demonstration  of  the  wisdom  and 
beneficial  influence  of  Phillip's  rule  needed,  it  is 
abundantly  provided  by  the  errors  and  incompetence 
of  his  immediate  successors.  One  of  the  first  actions 
of  Grose  was  to  supersede  the  civil  magistracy  and 
place  the  government  entirely  in  the  hands  of  the 
military.  In  a  society  such  as  then  existed  in  the 
colony  the  change  might  have  had  no  very  bad  effect 
had  the  New  South  Wales  Corps  been  composed  of 
respectable  and  reliable  men.  But  the  knowledge 
that  they  possessed  practically  uncontrolled  power 
rapidly  produced  an  impatience  of  every  kind  of 
restraint.  No  sooner  was  Phillip's  back  turned  than 
all  the  elements  for  evil,  both  in  guards  and  convicts, 
were  given  full  play,  and  lust,  profanity,  and  crime 
reigned  unchecked. 

Instructions  had  been  received  shortly  after  the 
Governor's  departure  authorising  him  to  make  grants 

of  land,  and  to  assign  convict  servants  within  pre- 
48 


INDULGENCES    TO    THE    MILITARY.  49 

scribed  limits  to  officers  of  the  New  South  Wales 
Corps.  Grose  therefore  lost  no  time  in  availing  him- 
self of  this  permission,  but  he  entirely  disregarded 
the  specified  limitations.  The  baneful  influence  of 
the  military  did  not  confine  itself  to  example,  and 
those  whose  most  obvious  and  solemn  duty  it  was  to 
try  and  improve  the  moral  condition  of  the  convicts 
had  no  hesitation  in  encouraging  vice  and  debauchery 
amongst  them  for  their  own  material  gain.  Phillip, 
although  he  had  never  tolerated  any  special  indul- 
gence to  the  soldiers  in  the  way  of  an  undue  allow- 
ance from  the  public  stores,  had  nevertheless  been 
mindful  of  their  comfort,  and  had  recommended  the 
English  Government  to  send  out  certain  luxuries, 
such  as  wine,  spirits,  and  tobacco,  to  be  sold  at  cost 
price  to  those  of  the  officers  who  might  wish  to 
purchase  them  for  their  own  consumption.  When 
the  military  became  the  largest  farmers  and  employers 
of  labour,  they  did  not  take  long  to  discover  to  what 
very  profitable  account  this  concession  could  be 
turned.  The  craving  for  spirits  amongst  the  convict 
population  had  always  been  very  great ;  possibly  a 
desire  to  forget  their  misery  in  intoxication  may  have 
strengthened  it,  at  the  same  time,  owing  to  the  small 
quantity  which  Phillip  had  permitted  to  be  landed  in 
the  colony,  prices  were  exceedingly  high.  Men  who 
would  not  work  for  wages  would  readily  engage  for 
rum  ;  the  lucrative  nature  of  the  traffic  open  to  the 
officers  is  apparent.  Before  Grose  had  been  in  com- 
mand many  months  spirits  became  the  common  and 
recognised  medium  of  exchange,  the  military  pur- 
chasing at  from  43.  to  5s.  per  gallon  and  retailing  at 

5 


50        THE  CONVICTS  AND  THEIR  GUARDS. 

prices  ranging  up  to  £8  per  gallon.  There  can  be 
no  doubt  that  the  officers  by  this  means  got  far  more 
work  done  than  otherwise  would  have  been  possible, 
but  the  effect  on  the  community  needs  no  description. 
Religious  observances  became  a  farce,  murders  and 
robberies  multiplied,  and  attacks  of  terrible  brutality 
upon  the  natives  called  forth  reprisals  of  equal  vio- 
lence, and  laid  the  foundation  of  the  inhuman  cruelty 
which  is  a  dark  blot  on  the  page  of  Australia's 
history. 

At  Norfolk  Island  King  continued  to  rule  his  little 
colony  with  justice  and  wisdom  ;  but  the  great  dis- 
similarity between  the  methods  pursued  by  Grose 
and  his  subordinate  must  inevitably  have  sooner  or 
later  produced  a  collision.  The  crisis,  when  it  came, 
strikingly  exemplified  the  characters  of  the  two  men. 
Even  at  Norfolk  Island  the  military  had  become 
infected  with  the  arrogance  and  licentiousness  of  the 
corps  in  Sydney,  and  the  relations  between  free  or 
freed  settlers  and  the  soldiers  were  by  no  means 
cordial.  One  day  a  settler  found  that  a  soldier  had 
very  grievously  wronged  him,  and  in  the  heat  of  his 
passion  shot  and  wounded  the  offender.  King,  him- 
self a  pure  and  honourable  man,  sympathised  with 
the  settler,  and  only  inflicted  a  small  penalty  on  him, 
whereupon  other  soldiers  took  up  their  friend's  cause, 
and  shamefully  maltreated  the  man  who  had  shot  their 
comrade,  taking  the  occasion  of  a  theatrical  per- 
formance at  which  King  was  present,  to  behave  in  a 
riotous  and  insubordinate  way.  After  the  entertain- 
ment they  demanded  from  Lieutenant  Abbot,  their 
commanding  officer,  that  the  settler  should  be  more 


KING   AT  NORFOLK   ISLAND.  51 

severely  punished,  and  swearing  that  they  would  not 
permit  any  soldier  to  suffer  for  an  offence  against  a 
convict,  displayed  such  a  mutinous  temper,  that  King 
and  Abbot  in  consultation  decided  that  the  company 
had  better  be  promptly  disarmed  and  a  militia  enrolled 
from  the  free  settlers  to  act  in  its  stead.  This  course 
was  followed,  and  the  ringleaders  of  the  mutiny  were 
sent  to  Sydney  for  trial.  That  King  should  presume 
to  interfere  with  the  New  South  Wales  Corps  so 
angered  Grose  that  he  completely  lost  his  head,  and 
censured  King's  action  in  a  despatch  which  is  a 
truly  remarkable  specimen  of  official  correspondence. 
Another  cause  of  friction  was  in  connection  with 
two  New  Zealand  chiefs  who  had  been  kidnapped  in 
order  that  they  might  instruct  the  colonists  at  Norfolk 
Island  in  the  preparation  of  the  native  flax.  King, 
fearful  that,  after  they  had  imparted  all  the  know- 
ledge they  possessed,  they  would  not  reach  their  own 
country  in  safety,  himself  accompanied  them  to  New 
Zealand  being  absent  from  his  government  ten  days. 
Grose  took  this  opportunity  to  severely  reprimand 
him.  The  most  serious  trouble,  however,  was  the 
dishonouring  by  Grose  of  the  bills  drawn  by  King 
to  pay  settlers  in  Norfolk  Island  for  crops  purchased 
on  Government  account.  These  bills  had  been  drawn 
in  strict  accordance  with  Phillip's  instructions,  and 
the  refusal  of  Grose  to  meet  them  so  disheartened 
the  farmers  that  an  irremediable  blow  was  struck  at 
agricultural  development  in  the  island. 

All  these  matters  were  referred  to  the  English 
authorities  ;  Grose,  it  is  true,  was  censured,  while 
King's  action  was  commended,  but  the  effect  of  this 


52  THE   CONVICTS  AND   THEIR   GUARDS. 

breach  of  faith  could  not  be  removed  by  the  tardy 
payment  of  the  money. 

Surrounded  by  disaffection  among  his  own  corps, 
in  spite  of  all  he  had  done  for  them,  and  conscious  of 
the  disapprobation  of  his  conduct  in  England,  Grose 
felt  no  desire  to  remain,  so  in  December,  1794,  he 
left  the  country,  resigning  the  command  to  Captain 
Paterson,  as  senior  military  officer.  Captain  Hunter, 
who  had  charge  of  the  Sirius  up  to  her  wreck,  had 
been  appointed  to  succeed  Phillip  before  Paterson 
began  to  rule,  so  that  that  officer  can  scarcely  be 
blamed  for  permitting  things  to  continue  as  Grose 
left  them  and  troubling  himself  very  little  with  affairs 
of  government.  Hunter  arrived  in  September,  1795, 
carrying  with  him  imperative  instructions  to  reinstate 
the  civil  magistracy  and  suppress  the  liquor  traffic. 
The  first  he  did,  but  he  was  unequal  to  the  latter 
task.  In  less  troublous  times  he  might  have  governed 
successfully,  but  he  was  not  strong  enough  to  battle 
with  the  great  abuses  which  permeated  every  grade 
of  society,  and  his  official  reports  are  one  long  lamen- 
tation that  the  task  was  too  hard.  In  his  efforts  at 
reform,  he  received  no  help  from  the  corps,  which  he 
described  as  containing  "  characters  who  have  been 
considered  disgraceful  to  every  other  regiment  in  his 
Majesty's  service,  who  were  often  superior  in  every 
species  of  infamy  to  the  most  expert  in  wickedness 
among  the  convicts  "  ;  but  he  feared  to  provoke  them 
to  open  hostility.  If  he  could  only  have  done  what 
he  wished  to  do  all  would  have  been  well,  for  his 
successor  gave  a  fitting  epitaph  to  his  government 
when  he  wrote :  "His  public  conduct  has  been  guided 


CAPTAIN  JOHN    HUNTER. 


54  THE   CONVICTS  AND    THEIR   GUARDS. 

by  the  most  upright  intentions,  but  he  has  been  most 
shamefully  deceived  by  those  upon  whom  he  had 
every  reason  to  depend  for  assistance  and  advice." 

King  had  been  so  successful  at  Norfolk  Island 
that  he  appeared  the  most  fit  person  to  cope  with  the 
difficulties  which  had  overwhelmed  Hunter.  He  was, 
moreover,  still  in  England  on  leave,  and  by  his 
personal  experience  of  the  present  state  of  affairs  in 
New  South  Wales,  was  of  considerable  assistance  to 
the  Secretary  of  State  in  the  consultations  which 
took  place  with  Phillip  and  Banks  as  to  the  best 
means  to  be  pursued  for  the  reformation  of  the 
colony. 

It  was  acknowledged  that  Hunter  had  acted  to  the 
best  of  his  ability,  and  it  was  recognised  that  his 
recall  would  be  a  bitter  disappointment  to  him  ;  so  the 
Duke  of  Portland  determined  to  send  out  King  as 
Lieutenant-Governor,  with  a  dormant  commission 
appointing  him  Governor  in  case  of  Hunter's  absence 
or  death.  King  was  made  the  bearer  of  very  stringent 
instructions  with  regard  to  the  liquor  traffic,  mono- 
poly and  military  traders,  and  he  was  directed  to 
lose  no  time  in  promulgating  them  and  enforcing 
obedience. 

In  April,  1800,  he  arrived  in  the  colony,  but, 
although  the  hint  conveyed  by  the  dormant  commis- 
sion was  clear,  Hunter,  unwilling  to  confess  him- 
self beaten,  clung  to  office.  King's  position  was 
anomalous  ;  until  Hunter  left  New  South  Wales  he 
had  practically  no  power  or  authority,  and  Hunter 
himself  was  disinclined  to  carry  out  the  instructions  of 
which  he  had  been  made  the  bearer.  For  some  months 


ARRIVAL    OF  CAPTAIN  JOHN  HUNTER.          55 

King  assisted  in  the  general  administration  of  public 
business,  but  Hunter  discouraged  any  attempt  to  deal 
with  the  principal  abuses,  so  that  all  that  could  be 
done  in  this  direction  was  to  pave  the  way  for  future 
reforms  by  cutting  off  the  supply  of  spirits  at  its 
source.  With  this  end  in  view  King  communicated 
with  the  Governor-General  of  India  and  the  British 
Consuls  in  America,  requesting  either  that  the  ship- 
ment of  spirits  to  New  South  Wales  should  be 
stopped,  or,  where  this  was  impossible,  that  ship- 
owners and  masters  should  be  warned  that  the  land- 
ing of  spirits  in  the  colony  had  been  prohibited.  At 
last  in  September  the  Governor  reluctantly  yielded  to 
King's  entreaties,  and  consented  to  the  promulgation 
of  the  orders  respecting  military  traders,  and  the 
barter  of  spirits.  As  the  New  South  Wales  Corps 
were  so  deeply  concerned,  Colonel  Paterson  was  first 
informed,  and  desired  to  make  the  substance  of  the 
new  regulations  known  to  the  officers  under  his 
command  ;  shortly  afterwards  the  instructions  from 
the  British  Government  dealing  with  these  matters 
were  published,  and  created  a  profound  sensation 
among  all  classes  of  people.  The  immediate  enforce- 
ment of  the  new  order  of  things  would  have  entailed 
great  loss,  and  possibly  even  ruin  on  many  persons  ;  so 
King  made  some  slight  temporary  concessions,  though 
the  command  that  no  military  officer  should  partake 
in  any  form  of  trade  caused  acute  irritation  amongst 
the  military.  Captain  Macarthur,  who  had  already 
by  his  energy  and  ability  taken  a  prominent  position 
as  farmer,  trader,  and  soldier,  with  characteristic  im- 
petuousity,  determined  to  shake  the  dust  of  New 


56  THE   CONVICTS  AND    THEIR    GUARDS. 

South  Wales  from  his  feet,  and  with  this  object  offered 
the  whole  of  his  valuable  collection  of  sheep  and 
cattle  to  the  Government  at  a  low  price.  King,  who 
on  several  occasions  obtained  his  end  by  meeting 
extravagant  conduct  of  this  sort  with  imperturbability, 
gravely  recommended  the  purchase  to  the  Secretary  of 
State,  but,  as  he  had  doubtless  anticipated,  before  an 
answer  was  received  Macarthur  had  plunged  afresh 
with  undiminished  enthusiasm  into  his  schemes  for 
fine  wool  growing. 

Hunter  now  perceived  that  his  return  to  England 
was  advisable,  so  left  King  with  a  free  hand.  The 
new  Governor  at  once  set  about  reform.  Certificates 
for  landing  were  refused  for  most  of  the  spirits,  which 
arrived  in  large  quantities  from  India,  America,  the 
Cape,  and  Brazil.  In  the  first  fourteen  months  of 
his  rule  no  less  than  32,000  gallons  of  spirits  and 
22,000  gallons  of  wine  were  sent  out  of  the  har- 
bour, and  the  small  quantity,  which  was  permitted  to 
be  landed,  had  to  be  sold  at  a  fixed  price  of  from  45. 
to  los.  a  gallon.  As  much  as  £8  per  gallon  had,  just 
previously  to  Hunter's  departure,  been  recovered  in 
the  Court,  the  judgment  having  been  sustained  by 
Hunter  on  appeal  ;  so  the  violent  reaction  which 
King's  proceedings  must  have  produced  is  evident. 
Steps  were  also  taken  to  prevent  smuggling  ;  regu- 
lations were  framed  to  govern  the  landing  of  spirits, 
very  heavy  penalties  being  attached  to  the  infringe- 
ment of  them. 

The  population  at  King's  departure  was  only 
7,519  persons,  3,295  of  whom  were  women  and 
children,  but,  during  the  six  years  which  he  governed 


THE   LIQUOR    TRAFFIC.  57 

the  colony,  shippers  were  refused  permission  to  land 
cargoes  to  the  amount  of  no  less  than  100,777 
gallons  of  spirits  and  wine.  Having  taken  effective 
steps  to  control  the  importation  of  liquor,  the 
next  thing  to  be  done  was  to  regulate  the  trade 
within  the  colony,  and  King  determined  to  limit  the 
power  to  sell  spirits  to  persons  specially  licensed  on 
the  recommendation  of  the  magistrates.  In  this  way 
all  retailers  of  liquor  were  brought  under  the  notice 
of  the  Government,  and  any  irregularities  perpetrated 
by  them  could  be  easily  punished.  It  was  not  to  be 
expected  that  abuses  of  such  deep  growth  could  be 
removed  without  much  difficulty,  and  King's  energetic 
measures  called  forth  "  much  animadversion,  secret 
threats  and  officious  advice,"  from  those  with  whom 
the  reform  interfered.  The  Governor  was  no  respecter 
of  persons,  and  all  classes,  from  officers  to  convicts, 
were  given  to  clearly  understand  that  obedience  to 
orders  was  necessary,  and  that  disregard  of  the  regu- 
lations carried  severe  and  inevitable  punishment. 

The  spirit  traffic  was  not  the  only  trade  which 
received  attention,  and  a  general  order  was  issued  in 
October,  1800,  by  which  an  attempt  was  made  to  deal 
with  monopoly  and  extortion.  The  price  at  which 
private  retailers  might  sell  articles  was  fixed  by 
the  Governor  at  20  per  cent,  on  the  price  paid  to 
the  shippers,  which  was  estimated  at  from  80  to  100 
per  cent,  on  the  value  of  the  articles  in  Europe 
or  India.  In  order  to  prevent  evasion  of  this 
regulation,  it  was  also  ordered  that  no  cognisance 
should  be  taken  by  the  Courts  of  any  promissory  note 
or  bill,  unless  the  consideration  for  which  it  had  been 


58  THE   CONVICTS  AND    THEIR   GUARDS. 

given  was  clearly  set  forth  thereon,  and  printed  pro- 
missory note  forms  were  supplied  by  the  Govern- 
ment. Butchers  and  bakers  were  licensed,  and  the 
quality  and  price  of  meat  and  bread  regulated,  and 
various  other  traders  were  treated  in  a  similar  way. 
The  following  notice  promulgated  by  King  in  March, 
1806,  is  an  example  of  the  prevailing  method  of 
dealing  with  commercial  matters  : — 

"  NOTICE. 

"March  23,  1806. 

"  The  following  ordinance  of  the  8th  of  May,  1801,  and  general 
order  of  the  I7th  of  May,  1802,  are  repeated,  and  required  to  be 
duly  observed  and  enforced,  viz. : — 

"It  is  hereby  ordered,  that  no  other  than  one  quality  of  wheat- 
bread  is  to  be  made  throughout  the  colony,  viz.,  such  bread  to 
be  composed  of  meal,  from  which  only  twenty-four  pounds  of 
bran  are  to  be  taken  from  one  hundred  pounds.  As  this  regu- 
lation is  necessary  to  prevent  a  distressing  scarcity,  any  inhabi- 
tant or  person  resident  in  the  colony  disobeying  this  ordinance 
will  be  punished  according  to  their  respective  situations,  exclu- 
sive of  the  penalty  of  five  pounds  for  each  offence.  Bakers  of 
any  description  disobeying  any  part  of  this  ordinance  will,  on 
conviction,  have  their  ovens  taken  down,  and  be  fined  in  the 
penalty  of  ten  pounds  for  each  offence." 

The  Female  Orphan  Institution  was  the  most  per- 
manent and,  probably,  the  most  beneficial  of  King's 
early  reforms.  One  of  the  first  things  which  he 
noticed  on  arriving  in  the  colony  was  the  terrible 
temptation  to  a  life  of  degradation  and  infamy  which 
surrounded  the  children,  and  even  before  Hunter's 
departure  he  decided  to  found  an  institution,  in  which 
the  girls  at  any  rate  could  be  received  and  rescued 
from  the  fate  which  otherwise  awaited  them.  A  house 


THE   FEMALE   ORPHAN  INSTITUTION.  59 

in  Parramatta  was  purchased  by  bills  drawn  on  the 
British  Treasury,  and  a  committee  formed  to  manage 
the  home. 

Long  after  King  had  retired  the  Female  Orphan 
Institution  continued  to  do  good  work,  and  the  full 
benefit  derived  by  the  country  from  this  humane 
effort  to  keep  the  rising  generation  uncontaminated 
by  the  terrible  vice  which  ran  riot  through  the  land 
was  reaped  in  later  years.  But  King  had  other 
matters  of  equally  serious  character  to  occupy  him. 
The  Irish  rebellion  of  1798  had  supplied  large  num- 
bers of  convicts  for  transportation,  and  these  political 
prisoners  brought  with  them  a  restless  energy,  which 
was  a  constant  cause  of  anxiety  to  their  guards.  The 
French  wars  at  this  time  also  tended  to  excite  the 
bond  population,  amongst  whom  vague  and  unfounded 
reports  of  the  intention  of  the  French  to  seize  the 
settlement  and  set  them  at  liberty  were  continually 
circulating.  Sometimes  these  hopes  were  stimulated 
by  the  arrival  of  privateers  with  their  prizes  in  the 
harbour,  and  in  1804  an  engagement  between  two 
ships  took  place  off  the  Heads,  within  sight  of  the 
inhabitants.  Rumours  of  intended  insurrection  had 
reached  the  Government  before  Hunter's  departure ; 
therefore  it  became  necessary,  in  the  first  months  of 
King's  rule,  to  take  extra  precautions  against  surprise, 
and  an  "  Armed  Association,"  composed  of  loyal  free 
settlers,  was  enrolled.  From  this  time  forward  there 
were  continual  conspiracies  and  outbreaks  among  the 
convicts.  The  widespread  feeling  of  suspicion  and 
expectation  seriously  interfered  with  progress  in 
peaceful  development.  The  Governor's  time  was  so 


60  THE   CONVICTS  AND    THEIR   GUARDS. 

fully  occupied  in  preparing  for  or  dealing  with  revolts 
of  one  sort  or  another  that  little  chance  was  left  for 
the  encouragement  of  agriculture  or  other  industries. 
In  1802,  so  grave  were  the  apprehensions  that  a  pro- 
clamation ordering  a  general  search  for  arms  was 
promulgated,  accompanied  by  very  stringent  regula- 
tions with  regard  to  seditious  meetings  or  utterances. 
During  the  early  months  of  1803  there  were  several 
acts  of  lawless  violence  reported  on  the  part  of  the 
convicts,  and  at  the  end  of  that  year  the  "  Loyal 
Associations  "  had  been  again  embodied  on  receipt  of 
the  news  of  the  renewal  of  hostilities  with  France. 
At  the  commencement  of  March,  1804,  curious 
rumours  reached  the  authorities.  Captain  Abbot  at 
Parramatta,  and  Mr.  Arndell,  at  the  Hawkesbury, 
both  heard  "several  mysterious  informations  about 
an  intended  insurrection."  On  the  4th  of  March 
Marsden  learnt  that  that  date  had  been  determined 
on  for  a  general  rising,  and  that  the  password  was 
"  St.  Peter."  By  midnight  King,  who  was  in  Sydney, 
had  been  informed  ;  he  started  immediately  for  Parra- 
matta, and  before  1.30  a.m.  on  the  5th  Major  Johnston, 
with  a  small  force,  was  on  his  way  to  the  disturbed 
districts.  The  further  particulars  received  by  King 
on  his  arrival  at  Parramatta  had  convinced  him 
that  this  movement  was  much  more  serious  than 
anything  that  had  yet  taken  place,  and  that  strong 
and  immediate  action  was  necessary. 

Not  a  moment  was  lost.  By  noon,  on  the  5th,  the 
country  had  been  scoured  for  arms  lest  they  should 
fall  into  the  hands  of  the  rebels,  and  martial  law  had 
been  proclaimed  throughout  the  disaffected  districts. 


INSURRECTION  OF  CONVICTS.  6 1 

Johnston  with  his  little  band  arrived  at  Parramatta  at 
dawn,  and,  after  a  halt  of  twenty  minutes  to  refresh 
the  men,  set  off  in  pursuit  of  a  body  of  rebels  who 
were  said  to  be  marching  towards  the  Hawkesbury. 
As  the  direction  they  had  taken  was  uncertain,  the 
detachment  of  soldiers  were  divided  in  half,  one  party 
under  Lieutenant  Davis  following  the  Castle  Hill 
road,  while  Johnston  and  the  remainder  hastened 
towards  Toongabbee.  On  catching  sight  of  the 
insurgents,  Major  Johnston  rode  forward,  attended  by 
a  trooper  and  Mr.  Dixon,  the  Roman  Catholic  priest, 
and  called  to  them  to  halt,  saying  that  he  wished  to 
speak  to  them.  "They  desired  that  I  would  come 
into  the  middle  of  them,"  writes  Johnson  in  his 
official  report,  "  as  their  captains  were  there  ;  which  I 
refused,  observing  to  them  that  I  was  within  pistol 
shot,  and  that  it  was  in  their  power  to  kill  me,  and 
that  their  captains  must  have  very  little  spirit  if  they 
would  not  come  forward  to  speak  to  me  ;  upon  which 
two  persons  (Cunningham  and  Johnston)  advanced 
towards  me  as  their  leaders,  to  whom  I  represented 
the  impropriety  of  their  conduct,  and  advised  them  to 
surrender,  and  that  I  would  mention  them  in  as 
favourable  terms  as  possible  to  the  Governor.  Cun- 
ningham replied  that  they  would  have  death  or 
liberty."  At  this  moment  the  rest  of  the  detachment 
came  up  and  Major  Johnston  gave  the  command  to 
charge.  The  order  was  obeyed  with  such  irresistible 
ferocity,  that  the  rebel  line  broke  after  but  slight 
resistance,  and  the  convicts  fled  in  all  directions. 
Twelve  were  killed,  six  wounded,  and  twenty-six, 
a  number  equal  to  the  whole  attacking  force,  taken 


62  THE   CONVICTS  AND    THEIR   GUARDS. 

prisoners.  Cunningham,  one  of  the  rebel  leaders, 
was  at  once  hung  ;  and  on  the  8th,  after  trial  by 
court  martial  at  Parramatta,  several  others  suffered 
the  same  fate.  The  prompt  action  of  King  and 
Johnston  had  a  good  effect,  and  with  the  first 
reverse  the  insurgent  cause  was  ruined.  On  the 
loth  of  March,  martial  law  was  cancelled  and  civil 
authority  restored,  but  the  Governor  took  every 
precaution  to  prevent  a  recurrence  of  such  a  revolt. 
No  man  free  or  bond  was  in  future  to  be  permitted 
to  leave  the  place  he  resided  in  without  a  pass  from 
a  magistrate,  and  other  stringent  regulations  govern- 
ing the  general  management  and  control  of  convicts 
were  rigorously  enforced.  Doubtless  these  restric- 
tions were  necessary  in  the  existing  conditions  of 
society,  but  it  is  impossible  to  read  the  chronicles  of 
this  date  without  feeling  that  an  effort  on  the  part 
of  the  bond  to  regain  their  freedom  was  justified 
by  the  brutality  of  the  treatment  they  received  in 
bondage.  The  blood-curdling  cruelty  and  outrage, 
to  which  convicts  were  often  compelled  to  submit 
on  the  voyage  out,  was  equalled  only  by  the  un- 
mentionable horrors  of  the  road  gangs  after  arrival ; 
while  the  vexatious  bullying,  which  was  a  frequent 
characteristic  of  assignment,  in  spite  of  King's  efforts 
to  render  justice  alike  to  bond  and  free  and  to  pre- 
vent cruelty  by  masters  to  their  servants,  frequently 
made  the  lot  of  those  transported  unalloyed  misery. 

Reference  has  already  been  made  to  the  singular 
restrictions  placed  upon  trade  ;  but  the  peculiarity  of 
the  Governor's  connection  with  commercial  under- 
takings was  not  confined  to  the  licensing  of  traders 


THE  HAWKESBURY  SETTLERS.  63 

and  the  regulations  of  prices.  In  1801  the  settlers 
at  the  Hawkesbury  sought  his  aid  to  extricate 
themselves  from  the  state  of  hopeless  insolvency, 
to  which  their  dissolute  and  drunken  habits  had 
reduced  them.  The  particular  means  which  they 
suggested  for  their  relief  was  "one  year's  suspension 
of  the  Civil  Courts  of  Judicature,"  so  that  it  should 
be  impossible  for  creditors  to  obtain  judgments,  and 
effect  executions  on  their  property.  King  met  this 
questionable  proposal  with  a  severe  rebuke,  but 
expressed  the  hope  that  their  creditors  would  not 
be  very  harsh,  as  he  feared  the  effects  on  the  develop- 
ment of  agriculture.  There  was  perhaps  more  excuse 
for  the  Hawkesbury  settlers'  demand  than  would  at 
first  sight  appear,  for  the  improvidence  and  reckless 
dissipation  of  the  people  had  bred  a  class  of  equally 
disreputable  usurers,  who  lost  no  opportunity  of 
battening  on  the  follies  of  their  fellow  colonists. 
In  1804  the  abuses  of  usury  had  reached  such 
dimensions,  that  King  fixed  the  rate  of  interest 
at  8  per  cent.,  and  ordered  that  all  persons 
attempting  to  extort  more  were  to  forfeit  "  treble 
the  value,  to  be  appropriated  to  such  fund  as  the 
Governor  may  direct."  King  at  this  period  was 
very  much  inconvenienced  by  the  want  of  a  qualified 
legal  adviser,  a  want  which  repeated  requests  to  the 
Secretary  of  State  failed  to  remove.  The  Judge- 
Advocate  was  an  illiterate  and  dissipated  retired 
officer,  and  King  in  1803  complained  that  from  the 
judgments  of  the  Court  there  "  has  scarce  been  a 
cause  without  an  appeal,  which  takes  up  too  much 
of  the  Governor's  time,"  as  he  had  himself  to  decide 


64  THE  CONVICTS  AND   THEIR   GUARDS 

in  all  such  cases.  The  military  officers,  compos- 
ing the  jury  no  doubt  gave  decisions  to  the  satis- 
faction of  their  own  consciences,  but  many  were 
of  such  an  extraordinary  character  that  law  and 
justice  fell  into  contempt. 

As  with  all  his  predecessors  from  the  foundation  of 
the  colony,  the  military  were  a  source  of  continual 
trouble.  They  had  always  regarded  the  civil  power 
with  no  friendly  eyes,  and  King's  activity  in  connec- 
tion with  the  suppression  of  the  liquor  traffic  still 
further  estranged  them.  In  1802  certain  officers  of 
the  New  South  Wales  Corps  made  unfounded  charges 
against  the  officers  of  the  French  discovery  ships 
under  Baudin,  then  in  port,  and  were  compelled  by 
the  Governor  to  apologise ;  by  this  unfortunate  oc- 
currence things  were  brought  to  a  head,  and  Paterson, 
the  Colonel  of  the  corps,  endeavoured  to  bring  King 
to  his  knees  by  means  of  the  very  instructions  which 
the  Governor  had  been  so  zealous  in  enforcing.  The 
words  of  the  Commander-in-chief  with  regard  to 
military  traders  were  that  no  officer  was  to  be 
"  permitted  on  any  account  whatever  to  engage 
in  the  cultivation  of  farms  or  any  other  occupa- 
tion to  detach  them  from  their  military  duty " ; 
Paterson,  therefore,  objected  to  the  employment  by 
the  Governor  of  any  officers  in  any  other  way  than 
that  specified.  The  naval  officer,  or  collecter  of 
customs,  and  a  gentleman  who  acted  as  military 
and  civil  engineer  were  affected,  so  King  at  once 
dispensed  with  their  services,  thanking  them  for  the 
efficient  manner  in  which  they  had  always  performed 
their  duties.  But  he  did  not  stop  here.  Paterson 


TROUBLE    WITH   THE   MILITARY.  65 

was  informed  that  the  guard  which  had  usually 
attended  the  Governor  was  no  longer  required, 
and  a  paymaster  who  had  been  a  magistrate  was 
removed  from  the  commission  of  the  peace,  while 
the  Governor  himself,  as  Commander-in-chief  of  New 
South  Wales,  directed  "  that  no  officer  or  soldier 
in  the  territory  be  employed  on  any  other  than  their 
military  duty."  The  places  of  the  guard  were  filled 
by  convicts  pardoned  for  the  purpose,  and  the  position 
of  artillery  instructor  and  engineer  was  conferred  on 
an  officer  who  had  been  transported  from  India  for 
killing  his  antagonist  in  a  duel.  Phillip  had  managed 
the  military  by  patience  and  tact,  and  Hunter  had 
succumbed  to  them  ;  but  King  gained  his  end  by 
showing  them  that  he  was  quite  indifferent  as  to 
whether  he  received  their  support  or  not.  At  the 
same  time  King  pointed  out  to  the  Secretary  of 
State  that  it  was  by  no  means  desirable  that  the 
Governor  should  be  so  utterly  dependent  on  one 
regiment,  and  suggested  that  a  small  force  of  artillery 
should  be  despatched  to  the  colony.  It  is  only  fair 
to  the  New  South  Wales  Corps  to  add,  that  when 
real  need  of  their  services  presently  occurred  on 
account  of  insurrection  of  the  convicts,  they  displayed 
a  loyalty  and  devotion  to  duty  beyond  all  praise. 

The  position  of  Governor  was  in  these  days 
certainly  no  sinecure,  and  few  of  those  who  fear- 
lessly performed  what  they  considered  to  be  right 
were  able  to  long  withstand  the  hostility  which  their 
action  could  not  fail  to  excite,  and  the  terrible 
strain  which  the  responsibility  and  isolation  of  their 
office  entailed.  King's  health  gave  way,  and  the 

6 


66  THE    CONVICTS  AND    THEIR   GUARDS. 

craving  for  peace  and  the  opportunity  to  disprove 
the  numberless,  malicious,  and  groundless  charges 
against  him  which  his  enemies  showered  upon  their 
friends  in  England,  induced  him  to  resign.  The 
effects  of  the  good  work  done  were  lost  sight  of  in 
the  turbulent  times  which  followed,  but  the  noble 
fight  he  made  against  the  difficulties  and  dangers 
which  had  proved  insuperable  to  Hunter  was 
crowned  with  a  large  measure  of  success,  and  the 
lofty  ideal  of  duty,  which  was  the  load-star  of  his 
whole  career,  made  him  a  fitting  successor  to  his 
friend  and  mentor  Phillip. 


V. 


THE   DEPOSITION    OF   GOVERNOR   BLIGH. 
(I8o6-l8l0.) 

CAPTAIN  WILLIAM  BLIGH  was  appointed  to  fill 
King's  place,  and  entered  on  his  short  but  eventful 
government  in  August,  1806.  He  was  unfortunate 
in  the  time  of  his  arrival,  for  the  colony  after  a 
period  of  prosperity  was  suffering  severely  from  a 
terrible  flood,  which  in  March  of  that  year  had 
swept  down  the  Hawkesbury  valley,  carrying  flocks, 
herds,  crops,  and  homesteads  before  it  The  Hawkes- 
bury settlers,  who  had  always  been  the  most  pros- 
perous in  the  settlement,  were  ruined  and  hopeless, 
and  about  fifteen  hundred  persons  out  of  a  total 
population  of  the  colony  of  7,500,  were  for  the 
time  reduced  to  the  verge  of  starvation,  and  had 
to  be  supported  by  the  Government,  or  the  charity 
of  their  fellows.  The  loss  of  the  grain  crops  made 
it  expedient  to  reduce  the  ration  from  the  Govern- 
ment store,  and  the  irritation  caused  by  King's 
measures  to  suppress  the  liquor  traffic  and  monopoly 
was  increased  by  the  apprehension  and  depression 
consequent  upon  the  flood. 


CAPTAIN   BLIGH. 


DIABOLICAL   CONSPIRACY.  69 

The  community  was  still  disturbed  by  rumours  of 
insurrection,  and  in  February,  1807,  a  serious  plot 
was  discovered.  The  Sydney  Gazette,  the  semi- 
official paper,  thus  describes  the  conspiracy :  "  We 
are  happy  to  announce  to  the  public  that  by  extreme 
vigilance  the  most  atrocious  and  wicked  plan  of 
insurrection  has  been  averted.  It  was  planned  in  a 
most  secret  manner  by  some  designing  Irish  prisoners, 
who  had  artfully  instilled  into  the  minds  of  their 
countrymen  a  certainty  of  taking  the  country  and 
gaining  their  liberty.  But  their  means  to  accomplish 
those  ends  were  most  horrid  ;  they  were  to  have 
destroyed  the  Governor.  .  .  .  The  New  South  Wales 
Corps  were  to  have  been  surprised  ;  the  leading  gentle- 
men of  the  colony  were  to  have  been  killed  at  the 
same  time  ;  the  Porpoise  and  shipping  were  to  have 
been  seized  ;  and  a  general  massacre  was  to  have 
taken  place,  so  far  as  to  have  secured  their  intended 
purposes.  Such  was  the  nature  of  this  diabolical 
plot,  when  the  ringleaders  were  taken  at  the  same 
moment  by  a  party  of  the  New  South  Wales  Corps, 
whose  soldier-like  conduct,  loyalty,  and  regard  for 
their  king  and  country,  deserves  the  highest  praise 
that  can  be  bestowed  upon  them.  This  rising  of  the 
croppies,  as  it  is  called,  has  been  more  or  less  in 
agitation  for  a  long  time,  they  having  forgot  the 
calamitous  consequences  of  their  insurrection  in 
1804  ;  and  we  have  further  to  lament  the  infatuation 
of  these  men,  when  at  the  present  moment  they  are, 
particularly,  living  under  greater  comforts  than  fall 
to  the  lot  of  the  labouring  poor  of  any  part  of  the 
world." 


70        THE  DEPOSITION  OF  GOVERNOR  BL1GH. 

The  history  of  Bligh's  rule  is  little  but  a  record  of 
the  events  which  led  up  to  his  arrest  ;  before  re- 
viewing these  it  may  be  well  to  glance  at  the  new 
governor's  previous  experience.  Bligh  had  early  in 
his  career  won  distinction.  After  the  bombardment 
of  Copenhagen  he  had  been  publicly  thanked  by 
Nelson  on  the  quarter-deck  of  the  flag-ship,  and  on 
several  other  occasions  he  had  shown  himself  able 
and  gallant.  The  achievement  which  gained  him 
most  notoriety  was  the  wonderful  voyage  of  over 
3,500  miles,  which  he  made  in  an  open  boat  after  he 
had  been  deserted  by  the  mutineers  on  his  ship  the 
Bounty.  The  perils  of  the  voyage  and  the  extra- 
ordinary skill  with  which  he  navigated  his  frail  craft 
seemed  to  have  diverted  public  attention  from  the 
events  which  had  led,  not  only  crew,  but  officers  to 
seek  by  violence  a  release  from  his  rule.  The  glamour 
of  romance  which  surrounded  his  great  voyage  made 
him  the  hero  of  the  hour,  and  when  Sir  Joseph  Banks 
was  consulted  as  to  a  fitting  successor  to  King,  Bligh's 
name  at  once  occurred  to  him.  Banks's  letter  to  Bligh 
is  of  special  interest,  for  it  shows  the  inducements  held 
out  to  the  latter,  and  also  the  great  influence  the 
former  had  in  the  direction  of  matters  affecting  the 
colony.  On  March  15,  1805,  the  great  botanist 
wrote  : — 

"  MY  DEAR  SIR, — An  opportunity  has  occurred  this 
day  which  seems  to  me  to  lay  open  an  opportunity  of 
being  of  service  to  you,  and,  as  I  hope  I  never  omit 
any  chance  of  being  useful  to  a  friend  whom  I  esteem 
as  I  do  you,  I  lose  not  a  moment  of  apprising  you  of  it. 


SIR  JOSEPH   BANKS,    BART.,   K.B.,    P.R.S. 


72          7V/£  DEPOSITION  OF  GOVERNOR   BLIGti. 

"  I  have  always  since  the  first  institution  of  the  new 
colony  at  New  South  Wales  taken  a  deep  interest  in 
its  success,  and  have  been  constantly  consulted  by  his 
Majesty's  ministers,  through  all  the  changes  there 
have  been  in  the  department  which  directs  it,  relative 
to  the  more  important  concerns  of  the  colonists. 

"  At  present  King  the  Governor  is  tired  of  his  sta- 
tion, and  well  he  may  be  so  :  he  has  carried  into  effect 
a  reform  of  great  extent  which  militated  much  with 
the  interest  of  the  soldiers  and  settlers  there  ;  he  is 
consequently  disliked  and  much  opposed,  and  has 
asked  leave  to  return. 

"  In  conversation  I  was  this  day  asked  if  I  knew  a 
man  proper  to  be  sent  out  in  his  stead,  one  who  has 
integrity  unimpcached,  a  mind  capable  of  providing 
its  own  resources  in  difficulties  without  leaning  on 
others  for  advice,  firm  in  discipline,  civil  in  deport- 
ment, and  not  subject  to  whimper  and  whine  when 
severity  of  discipline  is  wanted  to  meet  (emergencies). 
I  immediately  answered,  '  As  this  man  must  be  chosen 
from  among  the  post-captains  I  know  of  no  one  but 
Captain  Bligh  who  will  suit,  but  whether  it  will  meet 
his  views  is  another  question.' 

"  I  can,  therefore,  if  you  choose  it,  place  you  in  the 
government  of  the  new  colony  with  an  income  of 
£2,000  a  year,  and  with  the  whole  of  the  Government 
power  and  stores  at  your  disposal,  so  that  I  do  not 
see  how  it  is  possible  for  you  to  spend  ;£i,ooo;  in 
truth,  King,  who  is  now  there,  receives  only  ;£i,ooo 
with  some  deductions,  and  yet  lives  like  a  prince,  and 
I  believe  saves  some  money ;  but  I  could  not  under- 
take to  recommend  any  one  unless  £2,000  clear  was 


BANKS*  LETTER    TO  BLIGH.  73 

given,  as  I  think  that  a  man  who  undertakes  so  great 
a  trust  as  the  management  of  an  important  colony, 
should  be  certain  of  living  well  and  laying  up  a  pro- 
vision for  his  family. 

"  I  apprehend  that  you  are  about  fifty-five  years 
old,  if  so  you  have  by  the  tables  an  expectation  of 
fifteen  years'  life  and  in  a  climate  like  that,  which  is 
the  best  I  know,  a  still  better  expectation,  but  in 
fifteen  years  £i,ooo~a  year  will  at  compound  interest 
of  5  per  cent  have  produced  more  than  £30,000,  and 
in  case  you  should  not  like  to  spend  your  life  there 
you  will  have  a  fair  claim  on  your  return  to  a  pension 
of  £1,000  a  year.  .  .  . 

"  Tell  me,  my  dear  sir,  when  you  have  consulted 
your  pillow  what  you  think  of  this.  To  me  I  confess  it 
appears  a  promising  place  for  a  man  who  has  entered 
late  into  the  status  of  post-captain,  and  the  more  so 
as  your  rank  will  go  on  ;  for  Phillip  the  Governor  is 
now  an  admiral,  holding  a  pension  for  his  services  in 
the  country." 

The  troubles  which  culminated  in  the  disastrous 
termination  of  Bligh's  government  were  almost 
entirely  attributable  to  the  lack  of  those  very  quali- 
fications in  the  Governor  which  Banks  enumerates 
in  his  letter  as  essential  to  the  successful  tenure  of 
the  post.  Had  Bligh  been  a  little  more  "  civil  in  de- 
portment," had  he  depended  a  little  less  on  the 
advice  of  others,  and  had  all  his  actions  been  such  as 
to  preserve  his  integrity  from  assault  by  his  enemies, 
he  probably  would  have  had  no  difficulty  in  compel- 
ling the  respect  of  his  subjects  while  faithfully  per- 


74        THE  DEPOSITION  OF  GOVERNOR   BLIGH. 

forming  the  duties  of  his  office.  Unfortunately,  when 
he  had  only  been  a  few  days  in  the  colony  he  disclosed 
the  flaw  in  his  character.  The  stories  of  his  sayings 
and  doings  indicate  boorishness  and  violence  of  temper 
which  might  easily,  in  a  less  difficult  position,  have 
been  his  undoing.  In  a  private  letter  from  a  gentle- 
man occupying  the  responsible  position  of  naval 
officer  it  is  stated  that  Bligh,  going  "  to  church  in  full 
uniform,  conjectured  that  the  soldiers  laughed  at  him. 
....  He  abused  the  soldiers  in  the  church  and  had 
a  whole  bench  of  them  confined  for  some  days,  but 
thought  proper  to  liberate  them  without  trial."  At 
the  end  of  the  first  year  of  Bligh's  rule  the  same 
person  wrote  that — "  It  is  completely  the  reign  of 
Robespierre  or  that  of  terror.  .  .  .  He  destroys  and 
makes  away  with  all  private  property,  saying  every- 
thing is  his  ;  ...  in  short,  everybody  is  in  a  state  of 
dread.  .  .  .  Such,  then,  is  the  land  we  exist  in  (not  live)  ; 
how  long  it  can  remain  in  such  a  state  I  know  not,  but 
I  think  not  long."  Other  evidence  to  the  same  effect 
is  not  wanting  in  the  correspondence  of  the  time,  but 
what  has  been  quoted  is  sufficient  to  show  that  within 
twelve  months  of  the  assumption  of  government  Bligh 
had  earned  a  reputation  for  coarse  and  passionate 
abuse  of  power.  The  immediate  occasion  of  his  over- 
throw was  John  Macarthur,  who  had  some  time 
previously  resigned  his  commission  and  thrown  him- 
self heart  and  soul  into  his  fine  wool  enterprise. 
Before  Bligh  had  been  a  week  in  the  colony,  he  had 
insulted  Macarthur  by  asserting  in  a  particularly 
offensive  way  that  the  land  which  had  been  granted 
him  had  been  obtained  by  fraud,  and  from  that  time 


BLIGH'S  QUARREL  WITH  MACARTHUR.       75 

forward  relations  between  the  two  men  were  by  no 
means  friendly.  Bligh  would  seem  to  have  done  all 
in  his  power  to  harass  Macarthur,  and  Macarthur 
showed  no  inclination  to  submit  tamely  to  what  he 
considered  injustice.  Amongst  other  speculations  of 
the  latter  was  a  schooner  which  traded  to  and  from 
the  islands,  and  it  so  happened  that  a  convict,  un- 
known to  Macarthur,  escaped  in  his  vessel.  Macarthur 
was  summoned  before  the  Judge-Advocate,  under  an 
old  general  order  to  prevent  the  escape  of  convicts, 
and  fined,  but  he  declined  to  pay  the  fine  on  the 
grounds  that  he  was  unintentionally  and  unwittingly 
an  offender.  The  schooner  was  promptly  seized  to 
satisfy  the  judgment,  and  Macarthur  determined  to 
abandon  her  to  the  officers  of  the  court.  When  the 
Government  took  possession  of  his  schooner  Macarthur 
ceased  supplying  provisions  for  the  crew,  and,  as  the 
Government  gave  them  nothing,  they  were  compelled 
to  come  ashore.  But  a  port  order  forbade  the  crew 
of  a  vessel  to  land  without  special  permission,  under 
which  they  were  arrested  and  tried  for  the  offence. 
They  pleaded  that  the  exigencies  of  their  position 
necessitated  their  landing,  and  that,  had  Macarthur 
provided  them  with  food,  they  would  not  have  left  their 
ship.  Atkins,  the  Judge-Advocate,  immediately  issued 
a  warrant  for  Macarthur's  arrest  for  causing  them  to 
commit  an  illegal  act,  and  he  was  seized  by  a  body  of 
armed  police  and  committed  to  take  his  trial  before 
the  criminal  court  by  a  bench  of  magistrates,  over 
whom  Atkins  presided.  On  the  5th  of  January,  1808, 
Macarthur  appeared  before  the  court,  which  consisted 
of  a  jury  of  six  officers  of  the  New  South  Wales  Corps 


76        THE  DEPOSITION    OF  GOVERNOR   BLIGH. 

and  the  Judge- Advocate  as  president.  After  the  jury 
had  been  sworn,  and  as  Atkins  was  about  to  take  the 
oath,  Macarthur  objected.  He  stated  that  he  had 
vainly  tried  to  obtain  a  copy  of  the  indictment  against 
him,  and  that  he  had  appealed  to  the  Governor  to 
appoint  a  disinterested  person  to  preside  at  the  trial 
in  the  place  of  Atkins,  but  that  he  had  been  refused. 
He  besought  the  court  to  protect  him,  and  grant  him 
at  least  a  fair  trial.  He  gave  numerous  reasons  why 
Atkins  should  not  preside,  and  closed  a  passionate 
appeal  with  the  assertion  that  Atkins  and  an  emanci- 
pated attorney  named  Crossley  had  conspired  to  ruin 
and  destroy  him — "  I  have  the  proof  in  my  hands  in 
the  writing  of  Crossley  (here  it  is,  gentlemen  ;  it  was 
dropped  from  the  pocket  of  Crossley  and  brought  to 
me)."  Atkins  failing  to  prevent  the  reading  of  the 
protest,  adjourned  the  court,  and  hurriedly  left ;  Mac- 
arthur, however,  went  on  to  assert  that  he  was  in  fear 
of  his  life,  and,  refusing  to  give  bail,  asked  for  a  guard 
to  protect  his  person,  a  request  which  was  granted  by 
the  court.  During  the  rest  of  the  day  the  officers 
forming  the  court  were  in  constant  communication 
with  the  Governor.  They  supported  Macarthur's 
claim  for  a  disinterested  president,  but  Bligh  refused 
to  listen  to  them.  Again  they  requested  that  some 
one  should  be  appointed  to  act  instead  of  Atkins,  but 
the  only  reply  was  a  demand  for  the  papers  relating 
to  the  trial,  so  that  they  could  be  delivered  to  Atkins. 
The  officers  declined  to  give  up  the  papers  except  to 
a  new  president.  Bligh  responded  by  demanding, 
"  finally  in  writing,  whether  you  will  deliver  up  these 
papers  or  not."  The  officers  expressed  their  willing- 


ARREST   OF  MACARTHUR.  77 

ness  to  give  attested  copies,  but  refused  to  part  with 
the  originals  until  the  trial  was  completed.  Bligh  then 
sent  a  message  to  Major  Johnston,  who  commanded  the 
New  South  Wales  Corps,  desiring  to  see  him  at  once  ; 
Johnston  returned  an  answer  that  he  was  too  ill  to 
leave  his  house  or  write.  Early  on  the  morning  of 
the  26th  Macarthur  was  arrested  on  a  warrant  and 
lodged  in  gaol,  and  the  court  again  appealed  for  an 
impartial  president,  asking  for  Macarthur's  release 
to  the  bail  which  they  had  granted.  Bligh  returned 
no  answer,  but  issued  the  following  summons  to  each 
of  the  officers  composing  the  court : — 

"  The  Judge- Advocate  having  presented  a  memorial 
to  me  in  which  you  are  charged  with  certain 
crimes,  you  are  therefore  hereby  required  to 
appear  before  me  at  Government  House  at  nine 
o'clock  to-morrow  morning  to  answer  in  the 
premises.  Given  under  my  hand  and  seal  at 
Government  House,  Sydney,  this  26th  day  of 
January,  1808." 

A  letter  was  also  sent  to  Johnston  informing  him 
that  six  of  his  officers  had  been  summoned  for 
"  treasonable  practices."  The  position  seemed  too 
serious  for  delay,  so  Johnston,  in  spite  of  his  indisposi- 
tion, hastened  to  Sydney.  "  On  my  arrival,"  he 
stated  during  his  trial  in  England,  "  as  I  passed 
through  the  streets  everything  denoted  terror  and 
consternation  ;  I  saw  in  every  direction  groups  of 
people  with  soldiers  amongst  them,  apparently  in 
deep  and  earnest  conversation.  I  immediately  re- 


78         THE   DEPOSITION   OF  GOVERNOR   BLIGH. 

paired  to  the  barracks,  and  in  order  to  separate  the 
military  from  the  people,  made  the  drum  beat  to 
orders."  The  excitement  was  intense.  A  clamorous 
crowd  surged  round  Johnston  in  the  barrack-square 
and  urged  him  to  at  once  release  Macarthur  and  de- 
pose the  Governor,  and  an  order  directing  the  release  of 
the  former  was  despatched.  Macarthur,  as  he  walked, 
attended  by  his  friends,  from  the  gaol  to  the  barracks, 
was  plainly  visible  from  the  windows  of  Government 
House,  and  Bligh,  possibly  warned  by  previous 
experience,  realised  that  he  had  gone  too  far,  and  at 
once  prepared  for  flight.  Meanwhile  in  the  barrack- 
square  a  petition  was  drawn  up  praying  Johnston  to 
take  command  of  the  colony.  It  ran  as  follows  : — 

"  SIR, — The  present  alarming  state  of  this  colony, 
in  which  every  man's  property,  liberty,  and  life  are 
endangered,  induces  us  most  earnestly  to  implore  you 
instantly  to  place  Governor  Bligh  under  arrest,  and  to 
assume  command  of  the  colony.  We  pledge  our- 
selves at  a  moment  of  less  agitation  to  come  forward 
to  support  the  measure  with  our  fortunes  and  our 
lives." 

Johnston  yielded  to  their  importunities  and  at  once 
acted.  A  few  officers  were  sent  to  request  the  Governor 
to  resign,  and  Johnston  followed  at  the  head  of  the 
corps  to  Government  House.  At  first  Bligh  was 
not  to  be  found  ;  the  house  was  therefore  searched 
from  kitchen  to  garret,  and  eventually  he  was  dis- 
covered in  an  upper  bedroom  under  circumstances 
which  have  been  the  subject  of  much  controversy, 


BLIGH  PLACED  UNDER  ARREST.       jg 

% 
some  asserting  that  he  showed  cowardice,  and  others 

that  he  was  not  himself  hiding  under  a  bed,  but  was 
attempting  to  conceal  certain  papers.  To  both 
theories  there  is  objection.  It  is  indeed  hard  to  be-  .l. 
lieve  that  a  man  of  unsullied  honour  and  a  reputation 
for  exceptional  bravery  should  have  proved  a  coward 
on  this  occasion  ;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  no  papers 
which  there  could  be  any  particular  object  in  conceal- 
ing were  ever  found  or  again  alluded  to.  Possibly 
the  man  with  courage  to  do  great  deeds  in  honourable 
warfare  may  have  quailed  before  the  wrath  of  those 
who  had  at  last  been  goaded  beyond  endurance  by 
his  injustice  and  tyranny.  How  far  Bligh  was  the 
dupe  of  his  friends  it  is  hard  to  say.  Crossley,  who 
was  "  the  principal  adviser  to  the  Governor,"  was  con- 
victed at  various  times  of  forgery,  perjury,  and  other 
offences.  Atkins,  who  was  also  an  adviser,  was 
described  by  Bligh  himself,  in  a  despatch  to  the 
Secretary  of  State,  as  a  man  "  accustomed  to  in- 
ebriety, the  ridicule  of  the  community,  pronouncing 
sentence  of  death  in  moments  of  intoxication,  of  weak 
determination,  and  floating  and  infirm  opinions." 
Grose,  another  friend,  was  also  of  bad  repute ;  in 
fact,  the  only  two  respectable  advisers  he  seems 
to  have  had  were  Campbell  and  Palmer,  and  of 
the  former  it  will  be  remembered  that  he  had  fallen 
foul  of  King  on  account  of  his  attempts  to  import 
spirits. 

After  his  capture  Bligh  was  placed  under  arrest,  and 
Johnston  assumed  the  reigns  of  government.  He 
dismissed  all  those  who  had  served  under  Bligh,  and 
appointed  his  friends  in  their  places  ;  but,  beyond  this, 


80         THE   DEPOSITION   OF   GOVERNOR   BLIGH. 

few  changes  were  made  in  the  general  administration 
of  affairs.  No  illegal  indulgence  of  the  military, 
similar  to  that  permitted  by  Grose,  was  sanctioned,  and 
Johnston  seems  to  have  honestly  and  fearlessly  obeyed 
the  instructions  he  found  in  the  despatches  from  the 
Secretary  of  State,  and  to  have  done  his  utmost  to 
prevent  the  importation  of  spirits  and  smuggling. 
On  the  28th  of  July  Lieutcnant-Governor  Colonel 
Foveaux  arrived  in  the  colony.  He  was  on  his  way 
to  assume  command  of  Norfolk  Island,  and  was 
ignorant  of  the  events  that  had  passed  at  Sydney. 
He  now  undertook  the  government  of  New  South 
Wales,  in  the  room  of  Colonel  Johnston,  but  made  no 
changes. 

Governor  Bligh  was  confined  in  his  house,  with  the 
permission  of  only  sometimes  walking  in  the  garden 
attended  by  a  military  guard.  The  Porpoise  was  des- 
patched to  Van  Dieman's  Land  for  Paterson,  who 
superseded  Foveaux  as  senior  military  officer,  and 
continued  to  suppress  the  liquor  traffic  and  illicit  distil- 
lation. Bligh  was  still  under  arrest,  although  he  was 
treated  with  respect  and  his  comfort  was  consulted  as 
much  as  possible,  but  he  lost  no  opportunity  of  en- 
deavouring to  stir  up  his  friends  to  reinstate  him  in  the 
government.  At  the  commencement  of  1809  Paterson 
determined  to  send  Bligh,  Johnston,  and  Macarthur  to 
England  to  answer  for  their  conduct ;  and  consented, 
at  Bligh's  earnest  solicitation,  to  permit  him  to  sail  in 
H.M.S.  Porpoise,  on  condition  that  he  signed  a  declara- 
tion that  he  would  "  neither  touch  at  nor  return  to  this 
territory  until  he  shall  have  received  his  Majesty's 
instructions  or  those  of  his  ministers."  Bligh  readily 


BLIGH  ON   THE   PORPOISE.  8 1 

signed,  but  as  readily  broke  his  covenant.  No  sooner 
had  he  set  foot  on  the  deck  of  the  Porpoise,  and  was 
out  of  Paterson's  reach,  than  he  levelled  proclamation 
after  proclamation  at  the  heads  of  the  persons  who 
had  participated  in  his  deposition.  A  little  incident 
which  occurred  when  Bligh  went  on  board  is  recorded 
in  the  evidence  given  by  Lieutenant  Kent,  who  com- 
manded the  Porpoise,  and  throws  a  strong  light  on  the 
manner  of  man  the  deposed  Governor  was.  "  He  told 
me  with  extreme  violence,"  says  Kent,  "  if  I  knew 
my  duty,  the  moment  the  guns  were  on  board  the 
Porpoise  that  I  should  begin  and  batter  the  town  of 
Sydney  until  such  time  as  they  delivered  him  up  the 
government.  I  replied  I  did  not  conceive  my  duty 
led  me  to  sacrifice  so  many  innocent  lives.  He  then 
flew  into  a  most  violent  rage,  and  told  me  that  one 
day  or  other  he  would  make  me  repent  not  knowing 
my  duty."  Bligh,  to  use  Paterson's  words,  "  in  direct 
violation  of  his  word  of  honour  as  an  officer  and  a 
gentleman  solemnly  pledged  thereto  "  did  not  steer 
for  England,  but  remained  about  the  coast  endeavour- 
ing to  create  disorder.  The  danger  of  serious  trouble 
being  caused  by  his  presence  was  a  real  one,  for  there 
were  many  persons  who  had  benefited  by  his  humane 
exertions  to  relieve  the  distress  caused  by  the  Hawkes- 
bury  flood,  as  well  as  some  influential  and  honourable 
settlers  who  deemed  no  abuse  of  power  a  justification 
for  an  insurrectionary  movement  such  as  that  adopted 
by  Johnston  and  his  friends,  and  were  willing  and 
ready  to  aid  Bligh  in  an  attempt  to  reassert  his  govern- 
ment. One  gentleman  let  his  loyalty  so  far  outweigh 
his  discretion  as  to  write  a  letter  to  Foveaux  express- 

7 


83        THE  DEPOSITION  OF  GOVERNOR   DLIGH. 

ing  contempt  for  the  existing  regime.  "  On  Thursday 
morning  at  ten,"  says  the  Sydney  Gazette,  "  the  court 
assembled,  when  Mr.  George  Suttor,  of  Baulkham  Hills, 
settler,  was  placed  at  the  bar  and  indicted  for  having 
directed  to  his  Honour  the  Lieutenant-Governor  a 
letter,  containing  certain  contumelious  expressions, 
with  intent  to  bring  into  contempt  his  Honour's 
authority  in  this  territory,  &c.  The  indictment  being 
gone  through  and  Mr.  Suttor  being  called  upon  to 
plead,  he  replied,  '  Gentleman,  I  deny  the  legality  of 
this  court ;  you  may  do  with  myself  as  you  please  ; 
my  unfortunate  wife  and  family  I  leave  to  the  mercy 
of  God,  until  peace  shall  be  restored  in  the  colony :  I 
have  nothing  more  to  say.' 

"  The  Judge- Advocate  then  addressed  the  prisoner 
as  follows :  '  Mr.  Suttor,  you  are  called  upon  to 
plead  to  your  indictment ;  and  whatever  you  may 
have  to  offer  in  your  defence  will  be  attentively  con- 
sidered. I  again  ask  :  are  you  guilty  or  not  guilty  ?  ' 

"  Prisoner.  Sir,  all  that  I  have  to  say  I  have 
already  said.  I  deny  the  legality  of  this  court.  My 
allegiance  is  due  to  Governor  Bligh,  and  Governor 
Bligh  alone  ;  and  every  drop  of  blood  within  my  veins 
prevents  me  from  ever  acknowledging  the  legality  of 
this  court.  You  may  do  with  me  as  you  think  proper.' 

"Judge-Advocate.  Mr.  Suttor,  it  is  my  duty  to 
acquaint  you  that  it  is  provided  by  Act  of  Parliament 
that  in  case  a  prisoner  shall  refuse  to  plead  to  his 
indictment,  the  effect  will  be  the  same  as  if  he  pleaded 
guilty.  Once  more  I  call  upon  you — are  you  guilty 
or  not  guilty  ?  ' 

"  Prisoner.      I  stand  as  before  ;    I  have  said  all  I 


THE   CASE   OF  MR.   SUTTOR.  83 

have  to  say  ;  you  are  to  do  with  me  as  you  think 
proper.' 

"  The  court  was  ordered  to  be  cleared,  and  in  about 
twenty  minutes  re-opened,  when  the  Judge- Advocate 
addressed  the  prisoner  as  follows :  Prisoner  at  the  bar,  in 
consequence  of  your  refusal  to  plead  to  your  indictment, 
the  court,  in  conformity  to  Act  of  Parliament,  have 
found  you  guilty,  and  sentence  you  to  be  imprisoned 
six  calendar  months,  and  to  pay  a  fine  of  one  shilling.' " 

Nothing  of  any  very  great  importance  occurred  dur- 
ing the  rule  of  Paterson,  who  continued  to  direct  affairs 
until  the  arrival  of  Governor  Macquarie.  Kent  and 
Johnston  were  after  much  delay  tried  in  England  for 
the  share  they  had  taken  in  the  arrest  and  deposition 
of  Bligh,  and  the  former  was  honourably  acquitted. 
The  court  martial  on  Johnston  after  a  lengthy  in- 
vestigation "  were  of  opinion  that  Lieut-Col.  Johnston 
is  guilty  of  the  act  of  mutiny  described  in  the  charge, 
and  do  therefore  sentence  him  to  be  cashiered." 
Macarthur  was  not  brought  to  trial,  but  suffered  a 
severe  punishment,  the  Government  refusing  to  give 
their  consent  to  his  return  to  New  South  Wales.  For 
eight  long  years  he  strove  to  obtain  permission  to 
return  to  his  home  and  family,  but  indignantly  re- 
fused to  accept  any  concession  based  on  an  acknow- 
ledgment of  guilt.  He  maintained  that  he  possessed 
irrefutable  proof  of  Bligh's  peculations,  and  only 
asked  for  an  opportunity  to  produce  them  ;  un- 
fortunately such  opportunity  never  arose.  At  the 
beginning  of  1817  his  importunity  prevailed,  and  he 
was  granted  the  permission  to  go  back,  for  which  he 
had  so  long  and  earnestly  craved, 


VI. 


THE  EMANCIPISTS. 
(l8lO-l822.) 

THE  deposition  of  Bligh  had  been  an  extremely 
popular  move,  but  the  enthusiasm  which  had  over- 
come Johnston's  scruples  cooled  rapidly  when  the 
cause  of  irritation  disappeared.  Men  began  to  realise 
the  serious  character  of  the  action  they  had  taken, 
and  to  speculate  about  the  probable  reception  of  the 
news  in  England.  Bligh's  misdeeds  lost  colour  by 
the  lapse  of  time,  whilst,  on  the  other  hand,  besides 
the  usual  causes  of  estrangement  attendant  on  the 
office  of  governor  in  a  society  in  which  the  domestic 
details  of  the  inhabitants'  lives  were  matters  of  state 
concern,  surrounded,  as  they  were,  by  their  supporters 
in  the  late  stirring  events,  all  of  whom  considered  that 
they  had  a  just  claim  to  particular  recognition,  the 
military  administrators  of  necessity  gave  offence  in 
many  quarters. 

It  was,  then,  with  a  feeling  of  relief,  that  the  greater 
part  of  the  population  welcomed  Macquarie.  By  his 


GOVERNOR   MACQUARIE.  85 

arrival  the  suspense  at  any  rate  was  ended,  and  there 
was  good  reason  to  hope  that  Bligh's  mishaps  would 
have  warned  those  in  authority  in  England  to  be 
more  careful  in  future  in  their  selection  of  governors. 
The  military  officers  and  others  hastened  to  worship 
the  rising  sun  with  an  alacrity  which  augured  well 
for  the  peace  of  the  settlement,  and,  if  feeling  about 
the  past  still  ran  high,  there  appeared  to  be  on  all 
sides  a  desire  to  avoid  a  repetition  of  unhappy  dis- 
turbances. Macquarie  had  been  instructed  to  rein- 
state Bligh  for  twenty-four  hours,  to  express  His 
Majesty's  unqualified  disapproval  of  Johnston's  be- 
haviour, to  send  that  officer  home  under  close  arrest, 
and  to  immediately  relieve  the  iO2nd  Regiment, 
formerly  the  New  South  Wales  Corps.  In  the 
absence  of  Bligh,  who  was  still  hovering  about  the 
coast  of  Tasmania  in  H.M.S.  Porpoise,  the  first  part 
of  these  instructions  could  not  be  carried  out,  but 
Macquarie's  own  regiment,  the  73rd,  under  Col. 
O'Connell,  had  accompanied  the  new  governor,  and 
at  once  took  over  the  military  duties  with  the  assis- 
tance of  an  auxiliary  force  specially  enrolled  in  the 
colony  under  the  title  of  the  Royal  Veteran  Company. 
All  the  appointments  made  since  Bligh's  deposition 
were  annulled,  and  the  persons  who  had  occupied  the 
positions  previous  to  that  event  were  reinstated. 
Bligh  was  sent  for,  and  on  his  return  was  received 
with  honour,  and  to  all  appearances  general  amity 
prevailed  until  his  departure  for  England.  Never- 
theless the  signal  failure  of  two  public  meetings, 
which  were  called  by  the  late  governor's  friends  in  the 
hope  of  strengthening  his  hands  in  the  anticipated 


PUBLIC  BUILDINGS  AND   WORKS.  87 

investigation  into  the  causes  of  the  mutiny,  show  that 
his  offences  were  bitterly  remembered. 

Macquarie  immediately  set  about  reform,  whilst 
his  energy  in  exploration,  and  the  construction  of 
public  works,  did  much  to  awaken  a  lasting  spirit 
of  enterprise  in  the  community.  Unfortunately  his 
extreme  personal  vanity  made  it  almost  impossible 
for  him  to  benefit  by  the  experience  of  others,  or 
accept  advice  even  from  the  most  trustworthy  sources. 
Thus  the  very  fact  of  Marsden,  the  chaplain,  urging  the 
necessity  of  building  barracks  for  female  convicts  at 
Parramatta,so  that  thewomen  might  be  undersomesort 
of  control,  was  quite  sufficient  to  prevent  Macquarie 
from  doing  it.  Neither  money  nor  labourers  were 
forthcoming  to  stem  the  horrible  immorality  and 
degradation  at  Parramatta,  although  the  Governor 
did  not  scruple  to  spend  a  considerable  sum  on  the 
erection  of  stables  for  his  horses.  Another  instance 
of  the  grave  errors  which  Macquarie  occasionally 
made  is  found  in  the  contract  for  erecting  a  hospital 
which  he  conceived  to  be  immediately  required.  An 
agreement  was  signed  by  which  three  men,  one  of 
whom,  D'Arcy  Wentworth,  was  a  prominent  official, 
undertook  to  build  it  in  consideration  of  a  monopoly 
being  granted  them  of  the  sale  of  spirits  in  the  colony. 
As  the  Governor  had  just  promulgated  an  order  for- 
bidding all  government  or  military  officials  from 
trading  and  all  persons  from  bartering  spirits  for 
produce,  his  action  would  in  any  case  appear 
anomalous,  but  in  the  face  of  those  very  evils  which 
had  resulted  from  the  liquor  traffic,  which  it  had 
required  such  stupendous  exertions  to  conquer,  it  is 


88  THE  EMANCIPISTS. 

truly  incomprehensible.  The  "  spirit  contract "  called 
forth  severe  censure  from  England,  but  nevertheless 
the  building  was  actually  erected  by  this  means,  and 
an  already  depraved  society  was  still  further  degraded 
by  the  widespread  influence  of  the  nefarious  trans- 
action. 

The  colony  about  this  time  was  beset  with  numerous 
dangers,  both  social  and  commercial.  The  assign- 
ment system,  which  had  answered  well  enough  when 
properly  administered,1  had  of  late  fallen  into  grave 
abuses.  No  discrimination  had  been  shown  in  the 
allotment  of  servants,  and  many  masters  practically 
leased  to  the  convicts  assigned  to  them  the  liberty  of 
which  the  law  had  expressly  deprived  them.  This 
evil  was  somewhat  modified  by  the  recall  of  large 
numbers  of  the  bond  from  private  employers,  so  that 
they  might  be  put  on  the  public  works  and  buildings 
which,  under  Macquarie's  direction,  were  being 
pushed  forward  on  all  sides  ;  at  the  same  time  the 
cost  of  the  establishment  was  considerably  increased, 
and  the  sudden  withdrawal  of  labour  from  the  country 
occasioned  much  loss. 

Both  internal  and  external  trade  had  been  grow- 
ing more  quickly  than  the  population,  and  the  more 
complicated  and  extended  transactions  were  much 
hampered  by  the  scarcity  of  a  satisfactory  medium  of 
exchange.  Some  curious  remedies  were  resorted  to. 
In  order  to  increase  the  metallic  circulation,  the 
centre  of  the  Spanish  dollar,  the  principal  coin  in 
use,  was  struck  out,  and  thus  two  coins  of  a  com- 
bined nominal  value  were  more  than  equivalent  to  the 
unmutilated  piece.  Stringent  regulations  were  also 


WANT  OF  A  COINAGE.  89 

promulgated  to  enforce  the  acceptance  of  promissory 
notes  and  bills,  which  were  issued  in  profusion  by  all 
manner  of  persons  and  were  usually  subject  to  a 
discount  of  about  50  per  cent  Commercial  transac- 
tions must  have  indeed  been  reduced  to  chaos  by  the 
combination  of  a  debased  metallic  currency  and  the 
forced  circulation  of  worthless  paper. 

The  want  of  coin  was  augmented  by  the  withdrawal 
of  convict  servants  from  private  to  government 
employ,  and  by  the  cessation  in  a  great  measure  of 
the  use  of  liquor  for  barter,  brought  about  by  the 
energy  of  Governor  King.  The  "  spirit  contract" 
already  alluded  to  directed  the  attention  of  the 
authorities  in  England  to  the  whole  question  of 
allowances  and  concessions,  the  result  being  that  in 
1814  Lord  Bathurst,  who  was  then  in  charge  of 
colonial  affairs,  took  steps  to  put  a  stop  to  the 
practice  of  granting  supplies  from  the  public  stores 
and  assigning  servants,  victualled  and  clothed  at  the 
public  expense,  to  officers  of  the  Civil  Government.  In 
the  following  year  the  indulgences  to  the  military,  by 
which  they  had  been  permitted  to  purchase  certain 
luxuries  from  the  stores  at  prime  cost,  were  dis- 
continued, and  the  practice  of  issuing  spirits  to  all 
officials  and  licensed  publicans  at  a  rate  below  the 
current  market  value  was  prohibited.  The  great 
growth  of  trade  caused  the  establishment  of  the  Bank 
of  New  South  Wales  in  1816,  and  three  years  later 
Macquarie  instituted  a  savings  bank,  in  the  hope  of 
encouraging  thrift  amongst  the  large  class  of  small 
farmers  and  traders.  Soon  after  the  Governor's 
arrival  the  whole  aspect  of  affairs  had  been  changed 


90  THE  EMANCIPISTS. 

by  the  achievements  of  Messrs.  W.  C.  Wentworth, 
Lawson,  and  George  Blaxland.  The  first  was  a  son 
of  D'Arcy  Wentworth,  whose  name  has  already 
figured  in  these  pages,  and  all  three  were  interested 
in  pastoral  pursuits.  When,  in  1813,  a  severe  drought 
visited  the  colony,  and  much  loss  and  inconvenience 
was  felt  owing  to  the  limited  area  of  the  pasture 
lands  available  to  the  rapidly  increasing  flocks  and 
herds,  these  three  men  determined  to  make  yet 
another  attempt  to  pierce  the  mountain  barrier, 
which  had  hitherto  confined  the  settlers  to  a  narrow 
strip  of  country  by  the  coast.  After  a  journey, 
during  which  they  had  to  contend  with  almost  in- 
surmountable difficulties,  they  reached  a  point  from 
which  the  promising  country  just  beyond  the  range 
could  be  seen ;  on  their  return  the  value  of  the 
discovery  was  fully  recognised.  Macquarie,  ever 
ready  to  encourage  exploration,  at,  once  sent 
Surveyor  Evans  to  complete  the  investigations 
commenced  by  Wentworth  and  his  friends.  Evans 
successfully  crossed  the  watershed  and  found  the 
first  Australian  inland  river  which  he  named  the 
Macquarie,  but,  his  immediate  object  being  attained 
and  provisions  running  short,  he  turned  back.  So 
favourable  was  his  report  of  the  country  beyond 
the  barrier  that  a  road  was  commenced,  and  in 
1815  the  Governor  and  a  large  suite  crossed  the 
mountains  to  inspect  the  new  territory,  which  had 
been  called  Bathurst  Plains. 

A  settlement  was  formed,  and  Evans,  making  this 
the  base  of  operations,  started  again  on  his  travels. 
When  another  river  flowing  west  was  discovered,  the 


BATHURST  PLAINS.  9 1 

belief  gained  favour  that  the  two  streams  emptied  them- 
selves into  a  great  mediterranean  sea.  A  party  was 
formed  under  Surveyor-General  Oxley  to  test  the 
hypothesis,  but,  after  following  the  course  of  first  one 
and  then  the  other  river,  it  was  found  that  they  only 
led  into  uninviting  swamps.  The  spirit  of  exploration 
had  been  aroused  by  Wentworth's  success,  and  in 
1814  a  lad  named  Hamilton  Hume  and  his  brother, 
attended  by  a  native,  traversed  the  country  around 
Berrima,  reaching  the  tablelands  more  to  the  south. 
Three  years  later  Hume  and  Meehan  found  Lakes 
George  and  Bathurst  and  the  Goulburn  Plains,  so 
that  the  area  of  lands  suitable  for  both  pastoral  and 
agricultural  expansion  appeared  practically  un- 
limited. The  knowledge  of  the  coastline  was  also 
being  perfected  by  Captain  Phillip  P.  King,  a  son 
of  the  Governor  of  that  name,  and  Allan  Cunning- 
ham, a  botanist,  who  between  1817  and  1820  were 
constantly  at  work  in  the  cutter  Mermaid.  It 
was  supposed  that  Lake  Bathurst  had  some  outlet 
leading  to  the  sea,  and  an  effort  to  decide  the 
point  led  to  one  of  those  catastrophes  from  which 
fortunately  the  explorers  of  this  period  were  ex- 
ceptionally free.  Captain  Stewart  set  out  in  a  boat 
with  a  few  followers  to  seek  along  the  coast  the 
expected  opening,  but  in  Twofold  Bay  the  boat 
was  lost,  and  the  whole  party,  while  trying  to 
reach  Sydney  overland,  was  cut  off  and  murdered  by 
the  natives.  The  colonists  lost  no  time  in  turning 
the  discoveries  to  practical  account,  sheep  and  cattle 
being  driven  out  on  the  new  pastures  in  all  directions. 
With  the  extension  of  settlement  their  troubles  with 


0,2  THE  EMANCIPISTS. 

the  natives  increased,  though  in  most  instances  the 
Europeans  were  the  aggressors.  Far  from  control, 
the  worst  passions  of  a  degraded  class  had  full  play,  / 
and  brutal  outrages  on  natives  were  of  common 
occurrence,  provoking  terrible  acts  of  retaliation  from 
the  tribe  of  those  wronged.  The  natives,  finding  the 
animals  on  which  they  subsisted  becoming  scarce  in 
the  country  invaded  by  the  settlers,  committed  thefts 
of  corn,  vegetables,  and  stock  from  the  farms,  and,  in 
order  to  punish  them,  raids  were  organised  by  the 
colonists,  in  which  every  native  they  met  was  indiscri- 
minately butchered.  Men,  women,  and  children,  quite 
innocent  of  the  offence,  were  ruthlessly  shot  down,  if 
not  at  the  instigation,  at  any  rate  with  the  tacit  con- 
sent, of  the  Government.  It  is  true  that  Macquarie 
made  some  half-hearted  attempts  to  civilise  the 
blacks  by  establishing  a  school  for  native  children 
at  Parramatta  and  holding  annual  conferences  with 
the  chiefs  ;  but  woebetide  all  those  who  neglected  to 
obey  his  invitation  or  commands,  for  an  order  went 
forth  that  they  should  be  captured  or  "  destroyed  "  as 
soon  as  found.  At  intervals  a  small  military  force 
was  despatched  to  "  disperse "  a  more  than  usually 
turbulent  tribe,  and  the  race,  who  had  for  so  long 
dwelt  in  the  land,  rapidly  vanished  before  the  hand 
of  the  white  man. 

The  events  which  caused  Macquarie's  rule  to  be 
one  of  the  most  important  periods  in  the  history  of 
Australia  are  connected  with  the  change  which  was 
taking  place  in  the  composition  of  the  community, 
for  both  Bligh  and  Macquarie  owed  their  downfall  in 
a  great  degree  to  their  inability  to  cope  with  a  social 


SOCIAL   QUESTIONS.  93 

problem  which  had  not  presented  itself  with  anything 
approaching  the  same  force  to  the  other  governors. 
As  the  numbers  of  those  who  had  become  free  by 
pardon  or  servitude  increased,  they  became  a  new 
and  important  factor  in  society,  and  the  question 
arose  as  to  what  position  this  new  class  was  to 
occupy.  Did  a  pardon  or  the  expiration  of  a 
sentence  completely  wipe  out  all  former  disgrace,  or 
was  every  man  who  had  been  convicted  to  be 
regarded  by  the  law  and  by  society  as  tainted  for  all 
time? 

Bligh  does  not  seem  to  have  had  any  very  strong 
opinions  on  these  points,  although  by  his  actions 
he  favoured  the  emancipists  ;  but  Macquarie's  whole 
conduct  was  guided  by  the  determination  to,  if 
possible,  raise  those,  who  had  expiated  their  misdeeds, 
to  the  position  which  they  had  originally  occupied 
in  life.  The  colony,  as  he  pointed  out,  had  been 
established  in  a  large  measure  in  the  hope  of  reform- 
ing as  well  as  punishing  the  criminal,  and  the  value 
of  reformation  would  be  incomplete  were  not  restitu- 
tion the  reward  of  repentance.  On  the  other  hand, 
those  opposed  to  this  principle  urged  that,  were  ex- 
convicts  permitted  to  occupy  posts  of  honour  and 
reward,  transportation  would  lose  half  its  value  as  a 
deterrent  from  crime  ;  that  as  a  matter  of  fact  the 
emancipist  class  was  mainly  composed  of  those  who 
showed  no  spirit  of  repentance  for  past  sins  and 
often  led  openly  shameless  and  debauched  lives ; 
that  it  was  impossible  for  those  who  had  never 
been  stained  with  crime  to  associate  or  permit  their 
children  to  associate  with  men  who  had  suffered  the 


94  THE  EMANCIPISTS* 

degradation  of  conviction.  Do  what  you  would,  they 
asserted,  those  who  had  felt  the  clutch  of  the  law 
could  never  be  free>  there  was  always  that  one 
little  letter,  which  called  up  all  the  past,  and 
the  free  firmly  refused  to  accept  the  freed  as  their 
peers. 

In  the  case  of  Bligh  the  field  was  clear,  and  it 
is  not  probable  that,  had  he  used  discrimination  in 
the  selection  of  the  emancipists  whom  he  wished  to 
employ  or  favour,  his  efforts  to  rehabilitate  the  de- 
serving would  have  excited  any  serious  opposition. 
Unfortunately  his  choice  was  guided  not  so  much 
by  personal  merit  as  by  utility.  Macquarie,  however, 
was  encumbered  from  the  outset  by  the  disreputable 
proteges  of  his  predecessor.  First  espousing  their 
cause  under  the  direct  influence  of  Bligh,  he  was 
unwilling  to  admit  that  he  had  been  duped,  and 
clung  with  stubborn  persistence  to  those  whose 
actions,  he  himself  was  compelled  to  admit,  marked 
them  as  the  most  despicable  of  mankind.  By  this 
means  he  placed  a  weapon  in  the  hands  of  his 
opponents ;  they  were  enabled  to  disregard  the  just 
aspirations  of  the  emancipated  as  a  class,  when  the 
reputations  of  those  selected  by  the  Governor  as 
representatives  of  that  class  stank  in  the  not  too 
sensitive  nostrils  of  the  community.  Macquarie's 
methods  were  unfortunate.  He  hurled  commands 
and  threats  broadcast  about  matters  which  should 
have  been  approached  with  delicacy  and  tact.  His 
efforts  to  force  his  emancipist  friends  into  the  society 
of  free  men  first  provoked  the  military  to  insult 
them,  and  then  led  him  into  serious  quarrels  with 


MACQUARIE   RECALLED.  95 

Marsden,  who  refused  to  sit  with  them  on  the  bench 
or  as  co-trustee,  and  Ellis  Bent,  who  declined  to 
allow  them  to  practice  in  his  court  The  first-named 
should  have  been  a  valuable  councillor,  and  the 
second,  as  judge  of  the  newly-created  Supreme  Court, 
which  had  superseded  the  old  military  tribunal  in 
1814,  was  the  most  important  official  in  the  colony 
next  to  the  Governor  himself.  The  emancipists,  by 
fulsome  flattery  and  ostentatious  gratitude  played 
upon  a  character  naturally  vain,  until  Macquarie, 
in  the  heat  of  the  strife,  disappointed  by  his 
failure  to  reform  those  who  had  fallen  beyond  the 
reach  of  help,  was  led  into  extravagances  which  it  is 
hard  to  believe  he  would  have  committed,  had  not 
his  judgment  been  greatly  warped.  Tales  of 
strange  doings  in  the  colony  had  been  finding  their 
way  to  England  for  some  time,  but  the  crisis  came 
when  the  Governor  ordered  some  persons  who  had 
never  been  bond  to  be  flogged  by  the  public  casti- 
gator  without  trial,  for  trespassing  in  the  grounds  of 
Government  House.  The  punishment  was  carried 
out,  but  both  in  the  colony  and  in  England  it  was 
seen  that  the  time  had  come  when  a  stop  must  be 
put  to  the  vagaries  of  the  Governor. 

In  1818  a  special  commissioner,  Mr.  Bigge, 
was  despatched  to  make  a  searching  inquiry  into 
the  condition  of  the  colony  and  the  general  ad- 
ministration of  the  Government,  and  on  receipt 
of  his  report  in  1821  Macquarie  was  recalled.  Al- 
though he  had  failed  to  re-organise  society,  and 
crime  and  vice  were  still  appallingly  prevalent  at 
his  departure,  the  colony  had  grown  enormously 


96 


THE  EMANCIPISTS. 


in  wealth,  population,  and  importance.  The  settle- 
ment, on  which  he  so  reluctantly  turned  his  back 
in  February,  1822,  was  a  very  different  place 
from  that  which  he  had  approached  with  such 
benevolent  intentions  twelve  years  before. 


VII. 


THE  RULE  OF   BRISBANE  AND  DARLING. 
(1822-1831.) 

THE  reports  of  Mr.  Commissioner  Bigge  had 
attracted  a  good  deal  of  attention  in  England,  and 
the  Government  determined  to  reform  the  adminis- 
tration of  New  South  Wales  in  accordance  with  his 
recommendations.  As  Bigge  had  been  compelled  to 
condemn  in  a  great  measure  the  policy  of  Macquarie, 
it  was  clearly  impossible  to  use  that  gentleman  as  the 
instrument  with  which  to  carry  out  the  changes  ;  Sir 
Thomas  Brisbane,  a  man  of  less  pronounced  views, 
was  therefore  selected  for  the  duty.  Brisbane  arrived 
in  November,  1821,  but,  pending  the  determination  of 
the  new  constitution,  then  under  consideration,  he 
attempted  no  important  reforms  but  contented  him- 
self with  gradually  weeding  the  public  offices  of  the 
most  undesirable  of  the  emancipists  who  had  been 
appointed  by  his  predecessor.  In  the  unsettled  state 
of  affairs  he  was  particularly  anxious  to  avoid  being 
drawn  into  the  class  quarrels  which  so  deeply  troubled 
the  community,  and  for  a  time  he  escaped,  by  retiring 
to  Parramatta,  where  an  observatory  was  built  and  he 

8  97 


98        THE  RULE   OF  BRISBANE   AND  DARLING. 

was  able  to  devote  himself  with  but  little  interruption 
to  his  favourite  science,  astronomy.  The  changes 
which  were  made  in  the  constitution,  however,  com- 
pelled him  before  long  to  return  to  Sydney  and  take 
his  part  in  the  turmoil  of  political  life. 

The  New  South  Wales  Judicature  Act  received  the 
Royal  Assent  in  July,  1823,  and  embodied  most  of 
Bigge's  suggestions.  A  Supreme  Court  and  Court  of 
Record  was  established  and  the  jury  principle  was 
introduced,  the  qualification  being  fixed  at  50  acres  or 
a  dwelling  worth  ,£300.  A  Legislative  Council  of  not 
more  than  seven  nor  less  than  five  members,  nomi- 
nated by  the  Crown,  was  created,  but  the  actions  of 
the  Governor  were  left  untrammelled  and  he  could 
do  whatever  seemed  to  him  best  irrespective  of  the 
advice  of  the  Council.  Should  it  disapprove  the 
course  followed,  its  objections  were  to  be  recorded 
and  transmitted  to  England  where  a  final  decision 
would  be  made.  It  was  provided  that  no  tax  should 
be  imposed  for  other  than  local  purposes,  the  power 
of  the  Governor  to  levy  duties  was  confirmed,  and 
sundry  other  matters  were  dealt  with  connected  with 
details  of  administration. 

The  Chief  Justice  under  the  new  Act  was  Mr. 
Francis  Forbes,  who  had  served  on  the  Bench  in 
Newfoundland,  and  Mr.  Saxe-Bannister  was  ap- 
pointed first  Attorney-General.  Both  gentlemen 
arrived  early  in  1824,  and  a  court  was  opened  with- 
out delay.  The  advent  of  Forbes,  who  was  a  man 
of  strong  feelings,  soon  caused  the  Governor  to 
become  involved  in  one  of  the  disputes  which  so 
frequently  took  place  between  the  more  prominent 


THE  CASE  OF  DR.  DOUGLAS.  gg 

members  of  the  community.  Marsden  alleged  that 
a  Dr.  Douglas  had  committed  very  serious  irregu- 
larities in  his  capacity  of  magistrate,  and  Douglas 
responded  by  charging  Marsden  with  cruelty  and 
excessive  severity  on  the  Bench. 

Brisbane,  under  the  influence  of  Forbes,  took  an 
active  part  in  the  strife,  which  waxed  fiercer  and 
fiercer  until  the  air  was  full  of  recriminations. 
The  Attorney-General  recommended  and  Marsden 
demanded  that  the  whole  question  should  be  investi- 
gated, but  the  Chief  Justice,  who  had  more  friendship 
for  than  faith  in  Douglas,  did  not  desire  an  inquiry. 
He  therefore  persuaded  the  Governor  to  introduce  a 
Bill  to  indemnify  magistrates  for  actions  committed 
"in  the  execution  of  their  office."  Saxe-Bannister 
wras  instructed  to  draft  the  Bill,  but  declined  to  have 
any  hand  in  a  measure  to  indemnify  so  horrible  a 
practice  as  torture  to  extort  confession,  and  Brisbane 
was  compelled  to  seek  assistance  elsewhere.  The 
Bill  eventually  became  law,  but  the  successful  attempt 
to  burke  inquiry  into  charges  of  such  gravity  created 
a  profound  impression  and  excited  on  all  sides  ex- 
pressions of  strong  disapprobation.  One  of  the  chief 
parts  of  Bigge's  scheme  was  the  introduction  of  free 
immigrants  who  could  be  settled  on  the  soil,  to 
whom  convicts  could  be  safely  entrusted,  thereby 
removing  the  necessity  for  the  employment  of  large 
gangs  of  criminals  in  the  towns.  Grants  of  land  and 
servants  were  offered  to  persons  willing  to  come  to 
Australia,  and  during  Brisbane's  administration  large 
numbers  of  young  men  arrived,  for  the  most  part 
possessed  of  capital,  who  at  once  engaged  in  pastoral 


100     THE  RULE   OF  BRISBANE  AND  DARLING. 

pursuits.  Great  progress  was  made  and  the  country 
rapidly  became  covered  with  the  increasing  flocks  and 
herds  of  the  colonists.  The  distribution  of  the  popula- 
tion over  such  a  large  area,  however,  bred  some  evils. 
Convicts  frequently  escaped,  and  two  or  three,  banding 
themselves  together,  committed  horrible  crimes  and 
lived  by  plundering  the  farms  of  the  settlers.  At 
length  the  robbers  became  such  a  serious  scourge  that 
it  was  necessary  to  enrol  a  special  force  to  protect  the 
sparsely  populated  districts,  and  the  mounted  police 
were  formed  from  the  regiments  in  the  colony.  By 
their  perfect  discipline  and  great  courage  they  did" 
yeoman  service,  and  for  some  time  successfully  held 
the  bushrangers  in  check. 

The  immigration  of  free  settlers  soon  produced  an 
effect  upon  society,  and  New  South  Wales  became 
less  and  less  like  an  overgrown  gaol.  The  relative 
importance  of  the  emancipated  class  was  reduced,  and 
the  introduction  of  an  instalment  of  free  institutions 
rendered  the  administration  of  justice  less  capricious 
and  the  rights  of  the  inhabitants  more  secure.  But 
Brisbane  and  his  Council,  in  their  eagerness  to 
welcome  the  salutary  change,  took  a  step  which  the 
Governor  within  twelve  months  regretted,  and  which 
created  inextricable  difficulties  for  his  successor. 
The  only  newspaper  in  the  colonies  when  Brisbane 
arrived  was  the  Sydney  Gazette,  a  semi-official  organ 
and  the  medium  of  all  Government  announcements, 
all  contributions  being  carefully  scrutinised  by 
the  authorities  previous  to  publication.  In 
October,  1824,  Brisbane  came  to  the  conclusion 
that  the  censorship  of  the  press  could  be  safely 


THE   FREEDOM  OF   THE   PRESS.-  IOI 

abolished,  and  issued  a  general  order  to  that  effect. 
Almost  immediately  other  prints  sprang  into  life, 
the  most  prominent  being  the  Monitor  and  the 
Australasian,  in  the  columns  of  which  William 
Charles  Wentworth,  who  had  recently  returned  from 
England  after  being  called  to  the  Bar,  and  another 
barrister,  Dr.  Wardell,  warmly  espoused  the  eman- 
cipist cause,  and  gave  voice,  often  in  immoderate 
tones,  to  the  demand  for  still  further  concessions  in 
the  direction  of  popular  government.  So  violent 
were  the  writings  in  these  papers  and  so  dangerous 
their  influence  upon  the  minds  of  the  convicts  that 
Brisbane,  in  January,  1825,  less  than  four  months 
after  the  concession  of  freedom,  felt  it  necessary  to 
obtain  the  consent  of  the  Secretary  of  State  to  the 
enactment  of  some  measure  which  would  bring  the 
press  again  under  the  control  of  the  Government;  but 
before  Lord  Bathurst's  answer  was  received  Brisbane 
had  resigned  office,  and  Sir  Ralph  Darling  had  been 
appointed  in  his  stead. 

The  new  Governor  arrived  in  December,  1825,  and 
his  first  act  of  importance  was  an  attempt  to  deal 
with  the  newspaper  question.  He  was  instructed  to 
legislate  at  the  earliest  opportunity  for  the  control  of 
the  press,  making  an  annual  license  a  preliminary  to 
publication.  By  the  constitution  of  1823  it  had  been 
provided  that  no  Bill  could  become  law  until  the 
certificate  of  the  Chief  Justice  had  been  obtained  to 
the  effect  that  the  proposed  measure  was  not  repug- 
nant to  the  laws  of  England.  But  Forbes,  whose 
sympathies  were  with  the  cause  advocated  by  the 
Australasian ,  hesitated  to  certify  to  a  Bill  directly 


102     THE   RULE   OF  BRISBANE  AND  DARLING. 

aimed  at  that  paper.  At  last,  when  it  became  plain 
that  the  necessary  certificate  could  not  be  obtained 
for  the  Bill  as  sketched  by  the  Secretary  of  State, 
Darling  laid  before  his  council  two  measures  with  the 
same  object,  to  which  however  he  hoped  Forbes 
would  have  no  objection.  The  first  prescribed  certain 
penalties  for  the  publication  of  seditious  or  blas- 
phemous matter,  and  the  second  imposed  a  duty  on 
newspapers  sufficient  to  raise  its  price  to  a  figure 
beyond  the  reach  of  the  greater  part  of  the  convict 
population.  Both  Acts  were  passed  by  the  Council 
and  promulgated,  but  in  each  instance  Forbes  refused 
to  certify,  and  they  had  to  be  suspended.  This  action 
of  the  Chief  Justice  was  severely  criticised  by  the 
council  and  free  settlers,  and  the  newspapers  which 
had  so  narrowly  escaped  burst  forth  with  new  vigour 
and  violence.  "You  can  have  no  idea,"  wrote 
Macarthur  to  his  son  in  England, "  of  the  operation  of 
these  firebrand  papers  upon  the  common  people,  and 
every  one  not  connected  with  the  convict  interest 
admits  that  the  most  dangerous  consequences  are  to 
be  dreaded."  The  Governor,  realising  the  impotence 
of  his  position  as  far  as  new  legislation  went,  resolved 
to  make  an  effort  to  curb  the  unbridled  licence  of  the 
press  by  means  already  in  existence,  and  instituted 
prosecutions  for  libel  or  slander  whenever  an  oppor- 
tunity occurred.  But  this  only  called  forth  more 
revilings  from  the  papers,  and  the  Government  was 
drawn  into  an  unseemly  and  violent  wrangle,  dis- 
creditable alike  to  Darling  and  the  journalists.  The 
ultimate  results  of  these  disputes  will  be  dealt  with 
presently,  but  it  is  necessary  first  to  refer  to  some 


EMANCIPISTS  AND    TRIAL   BY   JURY.  103 

events  of  no  small  importance  which  occurred  at  this 
time. 

In  1828  an  amending  Constitution  Act  was  passed, 
the  principal  provisions  of  which  were  the  abolition 
of  the  grand  jury  and  the  enactment  that  all  offenders 
should  be  "  prosecuted  by  information  in  the  name  of 
His  Majesty's  Attorney-General."  The  small  council 
formed  in  1823  was  enlarged  to  fifteen  members,  and 
the  scope  of  its  legislative  powers  extended,  while  the 
necessity  of  obtaining  the  Chief  Justice's  certificate, 
which  had  caused  so  much  trouble  in  the  case  of 
the  Newspaper  Acts,  was  removed.  Darling  at  once 
introduced  a  Bill  differing  but  little  from  the  Act  of 
1827.  The  measure  was  certainly  calculated  to  pre- 
vent seditious  publications,  but  the  provisions  were 
ridiculously  harsh  and  were  modified  a  few  years  later 
at  the  instance  of  the  Home  Government. 

The  jury  question  was  early  dealt  with  by  this  new 
council,  and  a  law  passed  excluding  emancipists  from 
serving  in  criminal  trials,  thus  settling  for  the  time 
the  much  vexed  point  of  their  eligibility  to  act  as 
jurymen.  By  a  rule  of  Court  in  the  same  year  the 
professions  of  barrister  and  attorney  were  formally 
divided,  and  regulations  governing  admission  to  them 
first  drawn  up.  Perhaps  the  best  index  of  the 
growing  wants  of  the  community  at  this  period  01 
social  development  is  afforded  by  the  constant 
changes  effected  in  the  methods  of  administering 
justice ;  as  the  free  population  increased  the 
machinery  of  the  law  was  correspondingly  elaborated. 

The  punishment  of  a  murderer  named  Worrell  was 
Brought  about  in  1826  by  such  a  curious  sequence  of 


104     THE   RULE   OF  BRISBANE  AND  DARLING. 

events  that  it  is  worthy  of  special  mention.  Frederick 
Fisher,  a  freed  convict,  who  lived  at  Campbell  Town 
with  Worrell,  and  was  reputed  to  be  possessed  of 
considerable  property,  suddenly  disappeared,  and 
Worrell  caused  it  to  be  supposed  that  he  had  gone  to 
England.  Worrell  sold  off  Fisher's  property  and  no 
one  seems  to  have  suspected  foul  play  till  one,  Farley, 
declared  that  he  had  seen  Fisher's  ghost  sitting  on  a 
rail  not  far  from  his  old  home.  Oddly  enough  this 
story  obtained  listeners,  and  a  police  constable  with 
two  natives  were  set  searching  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
the  spot  at  which  the  vision  was  said  to  have  appeared. 
Blood  was  found  on  the  rail  picked  out  by  Farley  as 
the  ghost's  seat,  and  one  of  the  native  blacks  follow- 
ing the  direction  in  which  the  ghost  was  said  to  have 
pointed  went  into  a  pool  and,  to  quote  the  words  of 
the  constable's  evidence,  "  took  a  cornstalk  which  he 
passed  over  the  surface  of  the  water,  and  put  it  to  his 
nose,"  and  said  he  "smelt  the  fat  of  a  white  man." 
The  blacks  then  followed  the  creek  leading  from  the 
pool  till  they  came  to  a  branch  creek  up  which  they 
went  some  little  way  when  one  of  them  put  a  rod 
into  the  ground  and  said,  "  There's  something  wrong 
here."  Sure  enough  at  this  spot  the  body  of  Fisher 
was  found.  Worrell  was  tried  and  convicted,  confessed 
to  the  murder,  and  was  hanged  ;  but  no  satisfactory 
explanation  of  the  apparition  and  the  other  strange 
circumstances  attending  the  case  has  ever  been 
supplied. 

The  flow  of  free  immigration  which  commenced  in 
1822,  continued  unabated  for  the  first  few  years  of 
Parling's  administration,  and  as  a  consequence  the 


LAND   LEGISLATION.  105 

question  of  land  grants  called  for  attention.  In  1826, 
regulations  were  framed  with  the  object  of  rendering 
'the  support  of  assigned  servants  equivalent  to  pay- 
ments for  land  ;  and  in  1828,  a  Board  was  appointed 
to  assist  the  Governor  in  dealing  with  the  numerous 
applications  which  poured  in.  These  reforms,  com- 
bined with  the  discoveries  of  new  and  fertile  territory, 
gave  even  greater  impetus  to  pastoral  settlement. 
The  demand  by  the  colonists  became  heavier  than 
the  supply,  and  one  after  another  of  the  Government 
farms,  which  only  a  few  years  before  had  been  all 
that  stood  between  the  population  and  famine,  were 
broken  up.  The  distribution  of  the  bond  over  so 
large  an  area  did  much  to  check  the  horrible  crimi- 
nality which  characterised  the  large  gangs  employed 
by  Macquarie  on  the  roads  and  public  buildings. 

In  1827,  the  mania  for  speculation  in  land  and 
stock  had  become  excessive,  and  cattle  were  sold  for 
utterly  fictitious  prices.  Unfortunately  1828  and  the 
two  following  years  were  exceptionally  dry.  Grass 
and  crops  failed,  stock  died,  and  prices  came  tumbling 
down  even  lower  than  circumstances  warranted.  Free 
emigration  abruptly  ceased.  The  convicts'  rations 
had  to  be  reduced,  and  the  colony  passed  through  a 
severe  commercial  crisis.  When  rain  came  in  1830 
the  recovery  was  almost  as  violent  as  the  disease,  and 
farmers  were  unable  to  reap  their  crops  owing  to 
their  inability  to  obtain  sufficient  labourers.  But  the 
days  of  scarcity  left  a  legacy  of  crime,  and  bush- 
ranging  assumed  such  serious  dimensions  that  special 
legislation  was  necessary.  Donohue  and  his  gang 
infested  the  districts  round  Sydney,  and  in  other  parts 


106     THE   RULE.  OF  BRISBANE  AND   DARLING. 

of  the  country  bands  of  robbers  terrorised  the  settlers. 
On  the  2  ist  of  April,  1830,  the  situation  seemed  so 
grave  that  the  Council  passed  a  Bushrangers  Act 
through  all  its  stages  in  one  day,  conferring  extra- 
ordinary power  on  magistrates,  and  making  other 
provisions  which  practically  placed  the  country 
for  the  time  almost  under  martial  law. 

According  to  Macarthur  the  effects  of  the  Act 
were  magical ;  but  another  enactment,  the  News- 
paper Act  already  mentioned,  passed  in  the  same 
year,  did  not  meet  with  equal  approval  ;  and  it  was  in 
a  iarge  measure  the  hostility  created  by  it  against 
the  Governor  that  eventually  brought  about  his 
recall.  Although  this  was  the  cause,  the  particular 
event  which  was  made  the  occasion  of  complaint  was 
the  alteration  by  the  Governor  of  a  sentence  passed 
upon  two  soldiers  named  Sudds  and  Thompson. 
Soon  after  Darling's  arrival  he  discovered  that  the 
prosperity  of  the  emancipated  convicts  had  filled 
their  guards  with  envy,  and  that  self-mutilations  and 
the  perpetration  of  crimes  were  common  among  the 
soldiery,  who  hoped  thereby  to  escape  further  service 
and  enter  the  happy  ranks  of  the  convicted.  Two 
men  who  had  mutilated  themselves  were  sent  by 
Darling's  order  to  an  out-station  instead  of  being 
discharged,  and  a  little  later  when  two  other  soldiers, 
Sudds  and  Thompson,  committed  an  offence  with 
the  avowed  intention  of  escaping  by  transpor- 
tation from  the  regiment  and  joining  the  convicts 
in  Tasmania,  Darling  thought  it  high  time  to  put  a 
stop  to  such  practices.  The  penalty  of  transportation 
was  altered  to  labour  on  the  roads  in  chains,  a 


CASE   OF  SUDDS  AND    THOMPSON.  107 

sentence  which  did  not  relieve  the  men  from  further 
military  service  on  its  completion,  and  they  were 
drummed  out  of  the  regiment  in  irons  and  the  convict 
garb.  Darling  was  unfortunate  in  the  persons  he 
selected  as  examples.  Sudds,  overcome  by  mortifica- 
tion at  his  failure  and  the  ignominy  of  his  punishment, 
appears  to  have  deliberately  moped  and  starved  him- 
self to  death.  Sudds's  fate  was  after  several  years 
seized  upon  by  Darling's  enemies  as  grounds  for 
impeachment,  and  Wentworth  in  1829,  wrote  a  letter 
to  the  Secretary  of  State  with  that  object.  Mean- 
while the  local  opposition  press  denounced  the 
Governor's  brutality  and  barbarous  cruelty,  and 
made  assertions  as  to  the  weight  of  the  irons  and 
other  particulars  which  were  certainly  not  in  accord- 
ance with  fact.  After  numerous  inquiries,  in  all  of 
which  Darling  was  acquitted  absolutely  of  any  im- 
proper conduct,  the  farce  reached  a  climax  in  the 
appointment  of  a  select  committee  of  the  House  of 
Commons  to  investigate  the  charges.  On  this  oc- 
casion also,  although  every  one  who  had  ever  had  a 
grievance  against  Darling  hastened  to  bring  charges, 
the  conduct  of  the  Governor  was  pronounced  to  have 
been  "  entirely  free  from  blame."  But  before  these 
events  Darling  had  been  recalled,  and  had  left  the 
colony  without  much  regret.  His  departure  was 
made  the  occasion  for  a  display  of  rejoicing  by  his 
enemies  which  was  much  more  discreditable  to  them- 
selves than  to  the  object  of  their  spleen. 

During  the  rule  of  Brisbane  and  Darling  the  work 
of  exploration  went  on  steadily.  The  Goulburn 
river  was  discovered  in  1822  during  an  attempt  to 


IOS     THE   RULE   OF  BRISBANE   AND   DARLING. 

reach  the  Liverpool  plains ;  and  in  the  following  years 
Captain  Currie  and  Major  Ovens  struck  the  Murrum- 
bidgee,  and  by  following  its  course  found  the  fertile 
district  of  Monaroo,  while  the  indefatigable  Allan 
Cunningham  discovered  the  much-desired  stock  route 
to  the  Liverpool  plains. 

Although  the  coast  to  the  southward  of  Sydney 
had  been  explored  and  charted  by  Flinders  and 
others,  the  country  inland  remained  quite  unknown. 
In  1824,  Sir  Thomas  Brisbane,  in  order  to  induce 
exploration,  suggested  that  a  party  of  convicts  should 
be  put  ashore  at  Wilson's  Promontory,  and  that  a  free 
pardon  should  be  offered  to  those  who  successfully 
travelled  to  Sydney  overland,  Hamilton  Hume,  a 
young  man  born  in  the  colony,  being  offered  command 
of  the  expedition.  This  he  declined,  but  at  the  same 
time  consented  to  start  from  Sydney  and  journey 
overland  to  the  south.  His  services  were  accepted, 
and  a  sailor  named  Hovell  having  volunteered  to  go 
with  him,  the  two  explorers  set  out  from  Lake  George 
with  six  convicts  and  a  large  supply  of  provisions 
which  they  carried  in  two  carts  drawn  by  teams  of 
bullocks.  Until  the  Murrumbidgee  was  reached 
all  went  well,  but  the  river  was  broader  and  the 
current  stronger  than  they  had  expected  to  meet ; 
crossing  with  difficulty  by  covering  the  bottoms 
of  the  carts  with  the  tarpaulins,  they  converted 
them  in  this  way  into  punts  in  which  the  stores 
were  safely  ferried.  The  men  and  oxen  had  to  swim, 
but  all  reached  the  opposite  bank  without  mishap 
and  once  more  pushed  forward.  Soon  the  country 
on  their  line  of  march  became  so  rough  and  thickly 


CURRIE  AND  OVENS.  IOQ 

'  timbered  that  the  waggons  were  abandoned  and  the 
oxen  loaded  instead.  For  days  their  way  led 
through  forest  so  dense  that  little  of  the  surrounding 
country  could  be  seen,  but  occasionally  they  caught 
a  glimpse  of  the  snowy  peaks  of  mountains  on  their 
left  Perseveringly  they  journeyed  on  and  at  length 
came  to  the  banks  of  another  river  which  is  now 
known  as  the  Murray.  Again  boats  were  improvised, 
this  time  of  wickerwork,  covered  with  the  tarpaulins 
and  the  obstacles  successfully  overcome.  The 
country  was  now  more  open,  and  holding  their  course 
south-west  they  struck  first  the  Ovens  and  then  the 
Goulburn  rivers.  They  had  now  travelled  far  and 
expected  each  day  to  come  to  the  open  sea,  but  time 
slipped  by  and-  there  was  no  change  in  the  view  of 
eucalyptus-clad  hills  which  stretched  around  them  on 
all  sides  as  far  as  the  eye  could  see.  At  last  the 
two  leaders  espying  a  more  than  usually  lofty  peak, 
not  far  off,  left  the  remainder  of  the  party  to  rest  a 
few  days  in  camp,  and  after  encountering  enormous 
difficulties  reached  the  summit  of  the  mountain  from 
•which  they  hoped  to  sight  the  waters  of  the  Southern 
Ocean.  Their  hearts  failed  them  when  looking  to  the 
south  nothing  met  their  gaze  but  endless  gum  trees 
stretching  away  into  the  distance  ;  and,  naming  the 
place  Mount  Disappointment,  they  turned  back  and 
rejoined  their  comrades  at  the  camp.  It  was  decided 
to  still  push  on,  although  in  a  slightly  different 
direction,  and  the  weary  travellers  were  in  a  few  days 
rewarded  by  the  sight  of  what  appeared  to  be  a  great 
lake  lying  beyond  beautifully  grassy  and  park-like 
country.  Hovell  declared  that  they  had  arrived  at 


110     THE   RULE   OF  BRISBANE   AND  DARLING. 

Western  Port,  but  Hume  persisted  that  the  bay  was 
Port  Phillip,  and,  as  the  two  leaders  both  adhered  to 
their  opinion,  a  serious  quarrel  arose  which  still 
raged  when  the  return  journey  to  Sydney  had  been 
accomplished,  and  the  leaders  had  been  rewarded 
with  grants  of  land  and  the  rest  of  their  party  with 
freedom. 

When  between  1826  and  1828  a  long  stretch  of 
exceptional  drought  had  been  experienced,  it  occurred 
to  Darling  that  the  marshes,  which  had  so  baffled 
Oxley  when  he  had  attempted  to  explore  the  country 
round  the  river  Macquarie,  would  now  probably  be 
dried  up,  and  an  expedition  would  be  able  to 
penetrate  the  interior.  He  therefore  appointed  a 
party  comprising  Captain  Stuart,  Hume,  two  soldiers, 
and  eight  convicts  to  undertake  the  work.  They 
were  provided  with  portable  boats  with  which  it  was 
expected  they  would  be  able  to  navigate  the  river, 
but  on  reaching  the  point  at  which  Oxley  had  turned 
back,  they  found  nothing  but  nauseous  mud  flats,  and 
parched  cracking  ground  from  which  the  rushes  grew 
so  thickly  that  even  with  the  greatest  exertion  it 
was  almost  impossible  to  make  any  headway.  They 
therefore  turned  to  the  west,  and  after  travelling 
through  a  level  and  uninteresting  country  in  which 
there  were  evidences  of  frequent  floods,  they  at  length 
reached  a  river  which  they  named  the  Darling,  in 
honour  of  the  Governor.  For  about  ninety  miles  they 
followed  its  course,  and  then  turning  towards  Sydney 
retraced  their  steps. 

In  the  following  year,  Stuart  again  set  forth,  and 
this  time  took  his  portable  boats  to  the  Murrumbidgee, 


STUART  AND  tiUME.  Hi 

where  he,  with  Macleay  as  naturalist  and  eight  con- 
victs, embarked,  and  rowed  steadily  down  the  river. 
After  an  eventful  voyage,  during  which  they  were  in 
constant  danger  of  being  wrecked  on  snags,  or  cap- 
sized by  the  rapid  current,  they  shot  forth  on  to  a 
broad  river,  the  clear  waters  of  which  flowed  gently 
over  a  sandy  bottom  ;  they  drifted  down-stream 
during  the  day,  and  at  sunset  moored  their  boats 
to  the  bank,  and  formed  a  camp  on  shore.  They 
had  frequent  intercourse  with  the  natives  at  almost 
every  point  where  they  touched,  but  with  the 
exception  of  some  petty  thefts  no  hostility  was 
shown  towards  them,  and  they  always  left  the 
black  fellows  on  the  most  friendly  terms.  After 
following  the  course  of  the  Murray  for  about  two 
hundred  miles  below  the  point  at  which  they  had 
emerged  from  the  branch  stream,  they  came  to  the 
junction  of  another  large  river  flowing  from  the  north  ; 
this  was  not  explored,  as  a  short  distance  up  they 
found  a  fence  erected  across  the  river,  apparently  to 
catch  fish,  and  as  Stuart  was  anxious  not  to  displease 
the  natives  he  turned  down  stream  again,  and  allowed 
himself  to  drift  further  with  the  current.  Eventually 
the  boat  floated  out  on  to  a  broad  lagoon,  which  they 
called  Lake  Alexandria,  but  on  crossing  it  they  dis- 
covered that  the  entrance  from  the  ocean  was  blocked 
by  an  impassable  bar.  Drifting  down-stream  was  one 
thing,  but  pulling  back  against  the  current  quite 
another,  and,  when  day  after  day  had  to  be  spent 
wearily  at  the  heavy  oars  under  a  broiling  sun,  the 
crew  got  thinner  and  thinner  and  more  despondent, 
until  at  last  one  man  went  mad,  and  it  was  only  by 


U2     THE  RULE   OF  BRISBANE  AND  DARLING. 

the  greatest  exertion  that  Stuart  could  prevent  the 
rest  of  his  companions    from  throwing   down    their 
oars  and  giving  themselves  up  to  despair.     At  last, 
after  a  journey  which  seemed  a  life-time,  they  arrived 
in  occupied  country  once  more,  and  rested  at  some 
of  the  homesteads  on  the  banks  of  the  Murrumbidgee 
until  they  were  so  far  recovered  as  to  be  able  to  return 
to  Sydney.     Two  years  later  Major  Mitchell  suggested 
that  he  should  lead  an  expedition  to  the  far  north- 
west,  but   an    unfortunate   affray   with   the    natives 
resulted  in  the  death  of  two  of  his  men  and  the  loss 
of  his  stores,  so  that  a  hasty  retreat  had  to  be  made 
to  the  point  of  departure.     In  1835  another  attempt 
was  made  to  pierce  the  interior,  but  on  this  occasion 
again  it  had  to  be  abandoned,  owing  to  the  murder 
of  Cunningham,  the  botanist  of  the  party,  and  the 
determined  hostility  of  the  natives  who  barred  further 
progress.     Having  failed  in  a  north-westerly  direction, 
in  1836  Major  Mitchell  started  to  the  south.    Follow- 
ing the  Lachlan  to  its  junction  with  the  Murrumbidgee, 
he  formed  a  depot,  from  which  excursions  were  made 
into   the   surrounding   country,   but   here   again    his 
operations  were  seriously  impeded  by  attacks   from 
large  bodies  of  natives.     At  length  Mitchell  crossed 
the   Murray  and   entered    a  country  so   fertile   and 
beautiful  that  he  was  unable  to  adequately  express 
his  praise  of  it.     Passing   along  the    Grampians  he 
came  to  the  river  Glenelg,  and   here  launching  the 
portable  boats  which  they  had    brought  with  them 
the  party  drifted  down-stream.     The  scenery  on  either 
side  was  exquisite,  and  the  vegetation  most  luxuriant ; 
but  they  were  stopped  eventually,  as  Stuart  had  been, 


MAJOR   MITCHELL.  113 

by  a  sandy  bar  which  blocked  the  mouth  of  the  river, 
and,  having  landed,  they  went  a  little  way  to  the  east 
along  the  shore,  and  then  turning  back  traversed  the 
country  towards  Portland  Bay.  Here,  to  Mitchell's 
astonishment,  he  suddenly  came  upon  a  house  with 
all  the  signs  of  prosperity  and  occupation  about  it, 
while  a  small  vessel  rode  at  anchor  in  the  bay.  This 
turned  out  to  be  the  settlement  of  the  brothers  Henty, 
who  were  the  first  colonists  who  crossed  to  the  Port 
Phillip  district  from  Van  Diemen's  Land.  Mitchell, 
after  having  rested,  ascended  Mount  Macedon  from 
which  he  was  able  to  view  the  park-like  expanse 
which  induced  him  to  name  the  district  "  Australia 
Felix." 


VIII. 


CHANGES   IN   THE   CONSTITUTION. 
(1831-1846.) 

ON  the  3rd  of  December,  1831,  Sir  Richard  Bourke 
landed  and  was  presented  with  numerous  addresses 
more  or  less  extravagant  in  tone.  The  unpopularity 
of  Darling  with  a  section  of  the  community  caused 
the  welcome  to  his  successor  to  be  exceptionally 
cordial.  The  new  governor  was,  however,  a  man 
of  ability  ;  fulsome  flattery  combined  with  abuse 
of  his  predecessor  failed  to  make  him  commit  him- 
self to  either  the  "  emancipist "  or  the  "  exclusive  " 
parties.  There  were  several  matters  of  considerable 
importance  to  be  dealt  with  foremost  amongst  which 
was  the  question  of  finance. 

Bourke  at  once  endeavoured  to  fall  in  with  the 
views  of  Wentworth  and  his  party  on  this  point,  and 
when  he  met  his  council  for  the  first  time  in  January, 
1832,  he  expressed  the  intention  of  in  future  submit- 
ting estimates  of  expenditure.  A  further  concession 
to  Wentworth  was  made  by  an  extension  of  the  jury 
law  ;  but,  when  in  the  following  year  Bourke  wished 


SIR   RICHARD   BOURKE. 

to  permit  juries  in  criminal  trials,  his  measure  was 
only  carried  by  the  Governor's  casting  vote,  the  old 
question  of  the  admission  and  exclusion  of  the  eman- 
cipated being  revived  with  all  its  accompaniments  of 
party  feeling. 

Bushranging,  although  checked  by  the  extraordi- 
nary powers  conferred  on  the  police  and  magistrates, 
was  still  not  uncommon,  and  violent  outrages  were 
occasionally  committed  close  to  the  centres  of  popu- 
lation. The  Bushranging  Act,  which  had  been 
passed  during  the  rule  of  Darling,  was  about  to 
expire  in  1832,  and  the  Governor  recoiled  from  what 
appeared  to  him  the  unnecessarily  severe  provisions 
which  it  contained  ;  but  the  opinion  was  unanimously 
expressed  by  the  magistrates  that  it  should  be  renewed, 
while  a  select  committee  of  the  council  went  further, 
and  recommended  that  some  of  the  provisions  should 
be  made  even  more  stringent. 

But  measures  of  harsh  suppression  were  repugnant 
to  Bourke's  nature,  and  although  in  this  instance  he 
yielded  to  those  in  whose  memory  the  deeds  which 
produced  the  Act  were  still  fresh,  he  attempted  to 
improve  the  condition  of  the  bond  population  by 
passing  a  law  to  regulate  and  lessen  the  severity  of 
the  punishments  which  could  be  inflicted  by  magis- 
trates on  assigned  servants,  and  encouraged  thrift 
among  those  of  the  convicts  who  were  earning 
money,  by  permitting  them  to  make  deposits  in 
the  Savings  Bank,  on  the  condition  that  nothing 
could  be  withdrawn  without  the  Governor's  written 
authority. 

Wentworth  and  his  friends  recognised  the  humanity 


Il6  CHANGES  IN   THE   CONSTITUTION. 

which  inspired  Bourke's  measures,  and  consequently 
gave  him  their  support ;  but  in  the  concession  with 
regard  to  estimates  of  expenditure  a  fresh  opening 
was  afforded  for  agitation  in  favour  of  responsible 
government.  In  1833  a  public  meeting  was  convened 
at  which  Wentworth  held  forth  on  the  subject  of  taxa- 
tion only  by  representative  assembly.  He  urged  his 
audience  on  this  occasion  to  "  demand  the  right  the 
common  law  gives  you,  but  which  an  iniquitous 
parliament,  an  unreformed  parliament,  has  for  forty- 
five  years  withheld  from  you."  It  is  needless  to  say 
that  his  eloquence  was  greeted  with  applause,  and  if 
to  any  one  the  ludicrous  picture  of  Phillip  presiding 
over  the  deliberation  of  his  ironed  subjects  presented 
itself,  he  refrained  from  calling  attention  to  the 
absurdity  of  Wentworth's  assertion.  The  greatest 
enthusiasm  prevailed,  and  a  petition  to  King  and 
Commons  was  carried,  while  at  a  subsequent  meeting 
the  Governor  and  his  council  were  also  addressed.  In 
the  following  year  Wentworth  convened  another 
meeting,  and  the  House  of  Commons  was  again 
petitioned,  but  meanwhile  the  Patriotic  Association, 
of  which  Wentworth  was  the  mouthpiece,  had  been 
active  in  its  efforts  to  influence  the  British  Parliament 
in  favour  of  the  autonomy  of  the  colony.  A  few 
years  later  the  criticisms  of  finance  took  more  con- 
crete shape,  and  the  attack  was  directed  to  pensions 
of  imperial  officers  paid  out  of  colonial  funds  and  the 
annual  charge  for  police  and  gaols.  Wentworth  con- 
tended that  as  the  persons  who  needed  supervision 
and  punishment  were  British  convicts,  Great  Britain 
should  pay  the  greater  part  of  the  expense.  Up  to 


THE   PATRIOTIC   ASSOCIATION.  117 

1834  the  charge  had  been  borne  by  the  military  chest, 
but  in  that  year  the  Governor  was  directed  by  the 
Secretary  of  State  to  make  the  necessary  provision 
out  of  the  colonial  revenues.  The  moment  chosen 
for  the  change  was  inopportune,  for  the  cost  of  police 
and  gaols  had  increased  rapidly  in  recent  years,  and 
the  movement  in  favour  of  the  criticism  of  finance 
was  at  its  height.  All  through  the  remainder  of 
Bourke's  administration  the  police  and  gaol  question 
continued  to  be  a  popular  cry  with  reformers. 

As  the  population  became  larger,  governors  ceased 
to  take  such  a  personal  interest  in  the  social  and 
moral  condition  of  their  subjects  individually,  but 
Bourke's  attention  was  drawn  to  the  urgent  necessity 
of  doing  something  to  improve  the  morality  of  the 
community.  One  of  the  judges  of  the  Supreme  Court, 
Burton,  addressed  the  jury  at  the  termination  of  the 
sittings  of  the  Criminal  Court  in  1835  on  the  great 
prevalence  of  crime,  producing  statistics  to  show  how 
serious  was  the  condition  of  the  settlement  from  a 
moral  point  of  view.  The  picture  drawn  was  indeed 
a  terrible  one,  and  the  Governor  sought  a  remedy  in 
the  moral  police,  education  and  religion.  An  attempt 
was  made  to  inaugurate  a  policy  of  state  aid  to 
undenominational  schools  on  the  lines  of  the  Irish 
National  School  system  ;  but  this  was  not  what  the 
various  religious  bodies  wanted,  and  such  violent 
opposition  was  aroused  that  Bourke  abandoned  the 
idea.  Although  a  system  of  unsectarian  education 
was  for  the  present  unattainable,  it  was  still  possible 
to  establish  religious  equality.  Up  to  this  time  the 
Church  of  England  had,  as  in  the  mother  country, 


Il8  CHANGES  IN   THE    CONSTITUTION. 

received  special  consideration,  although  other  bodies 
had  been  helped  from  the  public  funds ;  but  Bourke 
distributed  aid  both  for  stipends  and  buildings  to  all 
denominations  impartially.  A  marked  revival  both 
in  religion  and  education  was  the  result,  and,  although 
in  later  years  the  ecclesiastical  expenditure  became  a 
serious  burthen  on  the  country's  treasury,  the  improve- 
ment produced  was  worth  the  money  spent.  In  spite 
of  Bourke's  tact  and  care  he  at  last  became  entangled 
in  the  old  feud  between  the  emancipists  and  free 
inhabitants.  The  assigned  servants  of  a  Mr.  Mudie. 
a  magistrate,  seized  arms,  committed  a  few  violent 
acts,  and  left  their  employ.  They  were  captured  and 
convicted,  but  denounced  the  cruelty  of  the  treatment 
to  which  they  alleged  that  they  had  been  subjected. 
The  case  called  forth  much  comment,  and  a  pamphlet 
signed  "  Humanitas "  attacked  magistrates  and  all 
masters  of  assigned  convicts  in  no  measured  terms. 
Possibly  the  fact  that  there  was  some  foundation 
in  many  instances  for  the  charges  preferred  by 
"  Humanitas  "  caused  all  the  greater  display  of  anger 
and  resentment  by  the  class  aspersed.  At  any  rate, 
when  it  at  last  became  known  that  a  convict  named 
Watt,  who  occupied  an  editorial  position  on  the 
Sydney  Gazette,  a  newspaper  which  usually  warmly 
supported  Bourke,  was  the  author,  he  was  vigorously 
denounced,  and,  as  Watt  led  a  notoriously  immoral 
life,  the  magistrates  saw  an  opening  for  retaliation. 
Complaints  regarding  Watt  were  made  to  the 
Governor ;  but  Bourke  declined  to  interfere,  till 
charges  having  been  brought  against  the  offender  in 
the  magistrates'  court,  and  his  case  being  referred  to 


CASE   OF  MR.   MUDIE'S  SERVANTS.  1 19 

the  Governor,  he  was  compelled  to  take  some  action. 
Throughout  the  case,  Mr.  Roger  Therry  had  taken 
a  prominent  part  in  support  both  of  Mudie's  ser- 
vants and  Watt,  and  had  consequently  made  him- 
self obnoxious  to  the  magistracy.  It  so  happened 
that  the  position  of  chairman  of  Quarter  Sessions 
fell  vacant  about  this  time,  and  some  one  had  to  be 
elected  by  the  magistrates  to  fill  the  place.  Bourke 
nominated  Therry,  but  the  magistrates  supported  Mr. 
C.  D.  Riddell,  treasurer  and  a  member  of  the  Execu- 
tive Council.  Bourke  warned  Riddell  that  he  could 
not  hold  the  positions  together,  but  Riddell  still 
remained  a  candidate,  and  was  duly  elected.  Bourke 
at  once  suspended  him  from  the  Council,  and  in 
reporting  the  matter  to  the  Secretary  of  State  ex- 
pressed a  desire  to  resign  if  his  action  was  not  sup- 
ported. The  suspension  was  disallowed,  and  Riddell 
again  took  his  seat  in  the  Council,  but  Bourke, 
although  urged  to  retain  his  office,  persisted  in  his 
resignation  and  was  relieved. 

The  enormous  growth  of  pastoral  occupation,  which 
had  taken  place  in  consequence  of  Bigge's  report,  and 
a  fuller  knowledge  and  appreciation  of  the  country's 
resources  had  caused  a  demand  for  labour,  which  even 
the  constant  inflow  of  convicts  was  insufficient  to 
satisfy ;  at  the  same  time  the  increase  of  the  free  and 
freed  population,  which  had  for  long  been  steadily 
going  on,  threatened  shortly  an  undesirable  competi- 
tion between  the  forced  labour  of  the  bond  and  free- 
wage  earners.  This  last  aspect  of  the  question 
caused  those  who  so  earnestly  desired  to  see  transpor- 
tation altogether  abolished  to  support  the  proposal  to 


120  CHANGES  IN   THE    CONSTITUTION. 

assist  free  labourers  to  come  to  Australia ;  for  in  the 
introduction  of  immigrants,  whose  interests  would  be 
diametrically  opposed  to  any  increase  in  the  number 
of  assigned  servants,  they  saw  a  weapon  ready  to  their 
hands.  Various  impracticable  schemes  for  raising 
funds  with  which  to  encourage  emigration  from 
Great  Britain  to  the  colony  were  put  forward,  and 
shortly  before  Bourke's  arrival  commissioners  had 
been  appointed  to  deal  with  the  whole  question. 
As  a  result  of  their  labours  it  was  determined  to 
use  the  money  obtained  by  the  sale  of  Crown 
lands  as  an  immigration  fund,  and  to  pay  half 
the  cost  of  a  passage  to  Australia  to  all  suitable 
persons  who  might  desire  to  settle  in  New  South 
Wales. 

In  1831,  during  the  administration  of  Bourke,  free 
grants  of  land  were  discontinued,  and  all  the  un- 
occupied portions  of  the  colony  were  in  future  only 
to  be  parted  with  at  five  shillings  per  acre.  Under 
this  new  arrangement  the  land  revenue  grew  rapidly, 
and  during  the  five  years  between  1832  and  1836 
increased  from  .£13,684  to  ;£  132,607.  Unfortunately 
the  funds  were  not  expended  with  discretion  at 
the  commencement.  Females  were  most  urgently 
required  in  the  colony,  so  the  first  step  taken  in 
the  new  departure  was  the  creation  of  a  Female 
Emigration  Board  in  London,  to  which  the  selection 
and  despatch  of  the  emigrants,  from  whom  so  much 
was  hoped,  was  exclusively  entrusted.  But  either 
from  carelessness  or  inefficiency  on  the  part  of  those 
to  whom  the  selection  was  delegated,  the  persons 
sent  out  were,  for  the  most  part,  of  a  character  which 


IMMIGRATION  QUESTION.  121 

not  only  made  them  quite  worthless  as  reformatory 
examples,  but  greatly  increased  the  difficulties  of 
future  purification.  New  South  Wales  was,  in  fact, 
made  the  dumping  ground  for  all  the  unconvicted  as 
well  as  the  convicted  criminals  of  the  United  Kingdom. 
Nor  had  the  importation  of  such  labour  as  was  really 
required  been  attended  to,  and  consequently  em- 
ployers were  compelled  to  bring  coolies,  Chinese,  and 
South  Sea  islanders  to  New  South  Wales  at  their  own 
expense ;  while  the  public  moneys  of  the  colony 
were  being  expended  on  the  passages  of  undesirable 
women.  In  1837,  however,  this  maladministration 
was  rectified  by  the  then  Secretary  of  State  for  the 
Colonies  ;  and  several  ships  full  of  respectable  free 
labourers  and  farmers  were  despatched  at  the  ex- 
pense of  the  land  fund  which  had  now  accumulated 
to  a  considerable  sum.  The  new  arrivals  were  greedily 
looked  for  and  warmly  welcomed  by  the  settlers,  and 
all  industrial  pursuits  revived  amazingly.  With  the 
increase  of  enterprise,  wages  rose,  and  the  standard  of 
living  was  greatly  improved.  The  thrifty  and  indus- 
trious found  that,  with  the  expenditure  of  the  same 
amount  of  energy  which  was  required  at  home  to 
keep  the  wolf  from  the  door,  they  could  earn  sufficient 
to  live  in  comparative  comfort  and  luxury.  Glowing 
accounts  went  to  England  of  the  magnificent  prospects 
of  the  colony,  while  the  demands  of  the  increased  and 
more  industrious  population  caused  a  rapid  expansion 
of  trade  and  commerce.  The  eyes  of  European 
capitalists  were  attracted  to  Australia  as  a  possible 
field  for  the  profitable  investment  of  their  money, 
and  capital  soon  began  to  flow  into  the  country 


122  CHANGES  IN   THE   CONSTITUTION. 

with  a  stream  relatively  greater  than  even  the  stream 
of  immigration. 

There  were  already  two  large  banks  in  existence — 
the  Bank  of  New  South  Wales  and  the  Bank  of 
Australia ;  now  four  new  banks  were  established, 
to  say  nothing  of  other  loan  and  trust  companies. 
With  increased  facilities  for  borrowing  came  an 
increased  desire  to  borrow,  and  enormous  trans- 
actions in  land  and  live  stock  took  place  all  over  the 
country,  payment  usually  being  made  by  long-dated 
bills  on  one  or  other  of  the  banks.  The  prospects 
of  the  colony  seemed  excellent  and  fascinating, 
dreams  of  rapidly-acquired  fortunes  began  to  float 
before  the  eyes  of  farmer,  pastoralist,  and  merchant 
alike.  It  is  true  that  the  harvests  of  1838  and  1839 
were  poor,  and  the  colony  had  been  suffering  from 
one  of  the  periodical  droughts,  while  the  great  staple, 
wool,  had  experienced  a  heavy  fall  in  price  in  London  ; 
but  the  abundance  of  the  following  years  only  added 
to  the  rage  for  speculation.  The  Government, 
apparently  not  apprehending  the  unsound  condition 
of  business,  would  seem  to  have  done  everything 
in  its  power  to  heighten  the  fever  and  precipitate 
the  crisis. 

For  instance,  the  area  of  Crown  lands  offered  for 
sale  was  very  much  restricted,  so  that  the  supply  was 
in  no  way  equal  to  the  demand,  even  for  genuine 
settlement,  a  course  of  action  which  unduly  inflated 
prices  and  stimulated  competition  to  an  unhealthy 
extent.  Then,  again,  the  rate  of  interest  demanded 
for  Government  deposits  in  the  Banks  was  raised 
from  4  to  7  per  cent,  entailing  a  corresponding 


COMMERCIAL   DEPRESSION.  123 

increase  in  the  charges  of  these  institutions  to  their 
customers,  as  well  as  a  tendency  to  accept  any 
security,  provided  an  investment  for  their  funds  could 
be  obtained.  In  this  way  advances  were  made  in 
many  cases  far  in  excess  of  the  value  of  the  property 
mortgaged.  An  instance  is  quoted  by  a  contem- 
poraneous writer  of  an  estate  on  which  ;£  10,000  had 
been  lent  by  one  of  the  companies,  but  which  only 
brought  in  £100  per  annum  to  the  mortgagees,  after 
they  had  been  compelled  to  take  it  over.  Still,  while 
the  mania  lasted,  there  was  a  great  appearance  of 
prosperity.  Wages  continued  to  rise,  and  every 
one,  from  the  highest  to  the  most  humble,  conducted 
their  domestic  affairs  on  much  the  same  extravagant 
scale  as  the  prevailing  business  transactions.  For 
those  who  had  no  money,  or  very  little,  it  was 
the  simplest  thing  in  the  world  to  borrow  it,  of  course 
with  the  assurance  that  the  enormous  prospective 
profits  of  the  speculation  entered  upon,  whatever  it 
might  be,  would  justify  an  immediate  expenditure  of 
a  great  deal  more  than  the  borrower  then  possessed. 
This  sort  of  thing  could  not  go  on  for  long.  The 
huge  paper  circulation  had  to  be  redeemed  sooner 
or  later,  and  although  the  confiding  British  capitalist 
might  for  some  time  be  gulled  into  lending  his  money 
with  no  security,  and  only  promises  for  interest,  he 
was  sure  to  awaken  after  a  little  while  to  the 
unsatisfactory  character  of  his  debtors. 

The  signs  of  the  coming  storm  were  riot  long 
delayed.  The  Crown  land  sales  fell  off  and  ugly 
rumours  were  whispered  from  one  corner  of  the 
colony  to  the  other.  At  first  the  failures  came  one 


124  CHANGES  IN   THE   CONSTITUTION. 

by  one,  but  presently,  in  the  year  1843,  the  whole 
unsubstantial  fabric  went  with  a  crash  and  credit  was 
completely  destroyed.  The  men  who  had  been 
living  luxuriously  on  other  people's  money  found 
themselves  brought  up  with  a  round  turn,  and  at 
once  tried  to  realise  what  they  could.  Property  upon 
property  was  forced  into  a  market  in  which  all  were 
sellers  and  none  buyers,  and  prices  fell  to  ridiculous 
figures.  The  rebound  was  even  more  unreasonable 
than  the  inflation.  Sheep  were  sold  by  the  sheriff's 
officer  for  sixpence  per  head,  and  large  stations  near 
Yass  and  on  the  Hunter  River  sold,  land  and  all,  at 
the  price  of  about  three  shillings  per  head  for  the 
sheep  which  were  on  them ;  the  same  authority 
referred  to  above,  quotes  instances  in  which  cattle 
bought  at  six  guineas  each  were  parted  with  for 
three  and  sixpence  per  head.  Houses  and  personal 
property  all  went  the  same  way.  Carriages,  which 
in  the  prosperous  days  had  cost  £140,  sold  for  £3, 
and  were  run  as  cabs  by  the  servants  of  the  late 
owners. 

The  Auction  Duty  returns  throw  a  strong  light 
on  the  extent  of  the  general  ruin.  In  1837,  at  a  time 
of  inflated  prices,  sales  amounting  to  £321,346  are 
recorded  ;  three  years  later,  in  spite  of  the  enormous 
shrinkage  in  values,  the  figures  stand  at  £1,246,742, 
and  it  is  asserted  that,  had  the  goods  sold  in  1840 
realised  anything  like  their  value  in  1837,  the  sales 
by  auction  would  have  amounted  to  fully  six  millions 
sterling.  The  Bank  of  Australia  was  unable  to 
withstand  the  storm  and  by  its  fall  involved  a  very 
large  number  of  persons,  both  shareholders  and. 


BANK  OF  AUSTRALIA   LOTTERY. 

depositors ;  at  one  time  starvation  was  so  near  a 
section  of  the  population  that  the  Governor  issued 
rations  from  the  public  stores  at  less  than  cost 
price. 

The  effects  of  the  failure  of  the  Bank  of  Australia 
threatened  to  be  very  serious,  for  its  ramifications 
were  great,  and,  in  order  to  prevent  "  a  panic  which 
would  annihilate  the  value  of  property,"  if  the  share- 
holders were  called  upon  to  meet  the  liabilities  of 
the  Bank,  Wentvvorth  introduced  a  Bill  into  the 
Council  authorising  the  disposal  of  the  property  of 
the  Bank  by  a  lottery.  The  Bill  was  passed,  and 
although  the  Royal  assent  was  refused,  the  lottery 
was  nevertheless  held  before  the  law  officers  could 
intervene  to  prevent  it.  Relief  for  the  pastoral 
interest  was  found  by  Mr.  O'Brien,  who  occupied  a 
run  in  the  Yass  district.  Sheep  had  practically 
ceased  to  have  any  market  value ;  but  Mr.  O'Brien 
discovered  that  a  uniform  price  of  about  six  shillings 
per  head  could  be  obtained  by  boiling  them  down 
for  tallow,  and  this  experiment  was  the  commence- 
ment of  a  large  and  well-sustained  trade. 

The  treatment  of  the  native  races  had  become  more 
and  more  brutal  with  the  extension  of  occupation,  until 
Sir  George  Gipps,  who  succeeded  Bourke  in  February, 
1838,  determined  to  mete  out  equal  and  indiscriminate 
justice  to  all,  whether  white  or  black.  The  abori- 
ginals were  looked  upon  by  the  great  bulk  of  settlers 
as  little,  if  at  all,  better  than  wild  beasts,  and  the 
shepherds  and  servants  on  the  distant  runs  were 
in  the  habit  of  murdering  black  men,  women,  and 
children,  without  the  smallest  provocation.  The 


126  CHANGES  IN   THE   CONSTITUTION. 

Government  had  for  so  long  disregarded  these  pro- 
ceedings that  a  profound  sensation  was  created  by 
the  arrest  and  arraignment  of  eleven  white  men  on  a 
charge  of  murder  in  connection  with  the  massacre  at 
Myall  Creek  of  between  thirty  and  forty  natives,  more 
than  half  of  whom  were  women  and  children.     Seven 
of  the  offenders  were  hanged,  and  no  stronger  con- 
demnation of  the  existing  state  of  affairs  could  be 
uttered  than  that  pronounced  by  them   when   they 
sought   to   excuse  themselves   because    "  They  were 
not  aware  that  in  killing  blacks  they  were  violating 
the   law,    as  it  had  been  so  frequently  done  in  the 
colony   before."      The    Myall    Creek    massacre   was 
only   one   of  many   similar   barbarities   which   took 
place   about   this   period,   but  it  was  the  first  event 
of  •  the   description    which    was    dealt   with    in    the 
Criminal   Courts,   and    both    Gipps    and   the  judge 
who   presided   were   abused    in    no   measured  terms 
by  an  indignant  public  for  their  share   in  the  pro- 
ceedings.    The  state  of  public  feeling  is  shown  by 
the  fact    that   the   Governor's  efforts  to  protect   his 
black    subjects   were  described    by  a   leading   news- 
paper   as    "  drawling    philanthropy    and     mawkish 
sentimentality."     Great   changes  were   made   in   the 
land    laws   in    1842.     An   Act    was    passed   by  the 
House  of  Commons  directing  that  all  lands  should 
in    future   be  sold  by  auction,  and  fixing  the  upset 
price  at   a  minimum  of  £i  per   acre.      Survey  and 
charting  were  made  necessary  preliminaries  to  sale, 
except  in  the  case  of  special  blocks  of  20,000  acres, 
and  certificates  were  to  be  issued  to  persons  paying 
money  into  the  British  Treasury  entitling  them  to 


My  ALL   CREEK  MASSACRE.  I2J 

any  unsold  surveyed  land  they  might  select  on 
arrival  in  New  South  Wales.  The  point  in  the  Act 
which  caused  the  greatest  trouble  was  the  authority 
conferred  on  the  Governor  to  grant  annual  licenses 
for  the  occupation  of  Crown  lands,  fixing  the  rent 
himself  and  being  able  to  raise  it  to  any  figure 
which  might  appear  to  him  proper.  In  the  same 
year,  1842,  the  long-anticipated  measure  recon- 
structing the  constitution  of  the  colony  and  granting 
the  elective  principle  was  passed  almost  unanimously 
by  both  Houses  of  the  English  Parliament.  The 
existing  Legislative  Council  was  empowered  to  arrange 
electoral  districts  and  other  details  for  a  new  legis- 
lative body  consisting  of  thirty-six  members,  twelve 
to  be  nominated  by  the  Crown  and  twenty-four  to 
be  elected  by  all  persons  possessed  of  a  low  property 
qualification.  The  Act  went  on  to  make  certain 
provisions  for  the  establishment  of  District  Councils, 
whose  principal  duty  it  would  be  to  collect  funds 
for  the  maintenance  of  police  and  the  construction 
of  local  works.  The  first  district  councillors  were 
to  be  appointed  by  the  Governor,  and  subsequent 
vacancies  were  to  be  filled  by  election,  but  failing 
an  election  the  Government  had  power  to  fill  the 
positions  by  his  nominees.  These  arrangements 
shortly  caused  friction  between  Gipps  and  his  new 
Legislature. 

On  the  ist  of  August,  1843,  the  new  Council  met 
after  an  election  which  was  characterised  by  noting 
and  loss  of  life.  There  were  many  matters  requiring 
urgent  and  careful  attention,  the  foremost  being 
the  extreme  prostration  which  had  followed  the 


128  CHANGES  IN  THE  CONSTITUTION. 

financial  crisis  and  now  appeared  to  threaten  the 
very  existence  of  the  community.  Wentworth  con- 
sidered the  only  hope  of  infusing  new  spirit  into 
commerce  and  industry  was  to  make  by  some  means 
the  vast  herds  and  flocks  of  the  pastoralists  negoti- 
able ;  with  this  end  in  view  he  introduced  a  Bill, 
which  was  passed,  legalising  liens  on  growing  wool 
and  the  mortgage  of  live  stock.  Although  the 
Secretary  of  State  for  a  long  time  demurred  to 
this  Act,  the  Royal  assent  was  eventually  obtained, 
and  all  the  benefits  anticipated  by  Wentworth  were 
fully  realised.  By  a  resolution  of  the  house  a 
parliamentary  agent  in  London  was  appointed  to 
attend  to  the  affairs  of  the  colony  in  England,  and 
a  corresponding  committee  was  nominated  to  instruct 
him,  but  the  principal  part  of  the  session  was  taken 
up  with  disputes  as  to  expenditure  and  the  applica- 
tion of  certain  funds,  and  objections  to  the  District 
Council  clauses  of  the  Constitution  Act.  During 
the  next  session  the  Council  continued  to  squabble 
with  the  Governor  over  questions  of  finance,  and 
matters  were  brought  to  a  crisis  in  1845  when  Gipps 
sent  down  bills  to  continue  the  "  unauthorised 
occupation  of  Crown  Lands  Act,"  and  to  make 
provision  for  the  maintenance  of  border  police. 
Here  was  the  opportunity  for  which  Wentworth 
and  his  supporters  had  been  waiting.  The  bills 
they  declared  could  never  pass  through  the  Council, 
first,  because  the  legislature  "was  not  disposed  to 
continue  summary  powers  which  had  been  used  to 
support  a  claim  to  tax  by  prerogative  alone ; " 
secondly,  because  the  Governor  had  repeatedly 


GIPPS   AND   HIS   COUNCIL.  1 29 

asserted  that  the  Crown  was  the  absolute  owne  rof 
waste  lands,  and  that  the  prerogative  was  sufficient 
for  their  management,  so  that  the  interference  of  the 
Council  would  be  unnecessary  ;  thirdly,  because  the 
legislature  would  be  disinclined  to  tax  the  squatters 
so  long  as  the  Governor  had  the  power  to  tax  them 
as  much  as  he  chose  by  the  raising  of  rent  and  by 
the  rates  levied  by  the  nominee  District  Councils  ; 
and  fourthly,  because  they  entirely  disagreed  with 
the  regulations  framed  by  Gipps  for  the  management 
of  the  Crown  lands  of  the  colony.  These  resolutions 
were  conveyed  to  the  Governor  by  deputation,  and 
the  Council  adjourned  to  a  date  later  than  that  on 
which  it  was  supposed  that  Gipps  would  be  relieved 
by  his  successor ;  the  continued  strain  of  govern- 
ment had  wrecked  his  health  and  he  had  been  com- 
pelled to  resign  his  office.  Gipps  was  equal  to  the 
occasion,  and,  in  order  to  prevent  the  new  Governor 
from  being  confronted  by  difficult  questions  before 
he  had  had  time  to  make  himself  acquainted  with 
the  circumstances  of  the  country,  promptly  prorogued 
Parliament  to  a  date  which  would  afford  his  successor 
ample  leisure  to  learn  the  true  state  of  affairs.  At 
the  same  time  he  reissued  the  regulations  which  had 
given  so  much  umbrage. 

In  spite  of  the  turbulent  ending  to  his  reign, 
Gipps  left  the  colony  amidst  expressions  of  genuine 
regret,  for  none  were  insensible  of  his  ability  and 
the  purity  of  his  motives,  even  in  those  matters 
which  had  aroused  most  popular  resentment.  It 
had  been  his  misfortune  to  quarrel  with  Went- 
worth  and  Lowe,  the  leading  spirits  of  the  Council, 

10 


130 


CHANGES   IN   THE    CONSTITUTION. 


and  it  is  impossible  to  believe  that  many  of  the 
actions  of  that  body  which  tended  to  strain  the 
relations  between  the  Governor  and  the  Legislature 
were  not  prompted  as  much  by  personal  as  by  public 
motives. 


IX. 


THE   STRUGGLE   FOR   FREE   INSTITUTIONS. 

(1846-1 85 1.; 

SIR  CHARLES  FITZROY  arrived  in  H.M.S.  Carys- 
fort  on  the  3rd  of  August,  1846,  and  entered  on  what 
was  the  most  memorable  term  of  office  of  any 
Australian  governor.  One  of  his  first  acts  was  to 
submit  estimates,  in  which  were  included  the  details 
of  the  schedules,  and  the  Council,  led  by  Wentworth, 
affirmed  that  they  had  no  intention  in  asserting  the 
right  to  deal  with  the  sums  named  therein,  "to 
propose  alterations  in  any  of  the  salaries  to  which 
the  faith  of  Her  Majesty's  Government  had  already 
been  pledged."  Thus  the  strained  relations  which 
had  so  long  existed  between  Gipps  and  his  council 
were  soon  removed  by  mutual  concessions  and  a 
spirit  of  mutual  confidence,  and  difficulties,  which  at 
one  time  threatened  to  cause  a  serious  rupture,  were 
by  a  few  civil  words  made  the  occasion  of  expressions 
of  amity  and  friendship.  The  question  of  quit  rents, 
which  had  been  another  stumbling-block,  was  also 
satisfactorily  settled  by  permitting  all  debtors  to 


132      THE   STRUGGLE   FOR   FREE   INSTITUTIONS. 

commute  them  at  twenty  years'  purchase,  the  excess 
of  that  sum  being  refunded  to  persons  who  had 
already  paid  more.  By  an  order  in  Council  transpor- 
tation to  New  South  Wales  had  been  abolished  in 
1840,  but  in  the  years  following  the  great  commercial 
crisis  of  1 843  its  revival  was  seriously  contemplated 
both  within  the  colony  and  in  England.  Lord  Stanley 
had  proposed  the  formation  of  a  new  settlement 
as  a  receptacle  for  British  criminals  in  1845  ;  two 
years  later  Colonel  Barney,  an  officer  of  Engineers, 
was  appointed  superintendent,  and  actually  sailed  for 
Port  Curtis,  but  he  was  unsuccessful  in  his  search 
for  a  suitable  site  for  the  new  colony,  and  before 
anything  had  been  done,  orders  were  received  from 
England  directing  the  abandonment  of  the  project. 
In  1848  the  attractions  of  the  Californian  gold-fields 
drew  large  numbers  of  the  more  adventurous  spirits 
from  New  South  Wales,  and  again  complaints  as 
to  the  dearth  of  labour  began  to  be  heard.  The 
Secretary  of  State  for  the  Colonies  saw  his  oppor- 
tunity, and  lost  no  time  in  making  use  of  it.  The 
order  in  Council  which  terminated  transportation  was 
at  once  revoked  ;  but  popular  sentiment  had  been 
misjudged,  for,  although  a  few  persons  considered 
that  the  only  hope  of  averting  the  ruin  which  the 
depreciation  in  station  and  farm  properties  threatened 
was  to  resort  again  to  assigned  service,  the  great 
bulk  of  the  population  viewed  the  reintroduction  of 
criminals  as  a  thing  to  be  prevented  at  all  hazards. 
In  February,  1849,  there  was  a  public  meeting  in 
Sydney  to  protest  against  Earl  Grey's  action,  but 
meanwhile  Mr.  Gladstone,  undeterred  by  the  ex- 


ARRIVAL   OF   THE    HASHEMY.  133 

perience  of  his  predecessor  at  the  Colonial  Office,  had 
suggested  that  the  time  had  come  when  convicts 
should  be  again  received,  asserting  "  that  the  practical 
mischief  of  exciting  jealousies  by  controverting  the 
alleged  promise  of  the  discontinuance  of  trans- 
portation would  be  greater  than  any  that  can  arise 
from  acquiescence  in  the  assumption  of  its  correct- 
ness." This  curious  method  of  circumventing  an 
acknowledged  compact  only  intensified  the  opposi- 
tion of  the  colonists,  and  popular  expressions  on  the 
question  became  ominously  violent.  Matters  were 
brought  to  a  head  by  the  arrival  of  the  HasJiemy 
in  Port  Jackson  with  convicts  on  board.  A  public 
meeting,  hurriedly  held  at  Circular  Quay,  was  largely 
attended,  and  speeches  in  no  moderate  language  were 
received  with  acclamation  by  the  excited  crowd.  A 
deputation  was  appointed  to  immediately  wait  upon 
the  Governor  to  inform  him  of  the  determination 
of  the  populace  to  resist  the  debarcation  of  the 
convicts  ;  but  as  it  was  clearly  out  of  the  power  of 
Fitzroy  to  send  the  HasJiemy  back  with  her  cargo 
of  criminals,  and  it  was  equally  impossible  to  keep 
the  wretched  prisoners  cooped  up  in  the  ship  for 
any  extended  period,  a  compromise  was  at  length 
arrived  at ;  the  Governor  permitted  most  of  the 
convicts  to  be  hired  on  board  by  settlers,  on  condition 
that  they  should  not  be  employed  in  Cumberland, 
the  metropolitan  county,  and  the  rest  were  promptly 
despatched  to  Moreton  Bay,  whither  those  who 
arrived  subsequently  were  also  sent.  The  incident 
of  the  Hashemy  called  forth  more  deliberate  and 
unmistakable  protests  from  the  inhabitants,  and  in 


THE   STRUGGLE  FOR   FREE  INSTITUTIONS. 

1850  forty-eight  petitions,  eight  with  five  hundred  and 
twenty-five  signatures  in  favour  of  the  continuance 
of  transportation  and  forty  with  no  less  than  36,589 
names  attached  against  it  were  forwarded  to  the 
English  Government,  while  the  Legislative  Council 

o  o 

resolved  "  that  no  more  convicts  ought,  under  any  con- 
ditions, to  be  sent  to  any  part  of  this  colony."  But 
although  the  people  of  New  South  Wales  would  not 
receive  the  outpourings  of  the  British  gaols,  free  im- 
migrants were  eagerly  sought  and  gladly  welcomed. 
Large  numbers  of  assisted  immigrants  arrived  each 
year,  and  usually  met  with  a  ready  demand  for  their 
services,  but  occasionally  some  hardship  was  ex- 
perienced owing  to  the  inability  of  the  settlers  far 
inland  to  make  their  requirements  known,  and  the 
tendency  of  the  new  arrivals  to  cling  to  the  city 
or  its  neighbourhood.  Mrs.  Caroline  Chisholm  did 
much  to  alleviate  these  evils  by  travelling  through 
the  country  with  batches  of  immigrants  to  the 
localities  in  which  they  would  be  most  likely  wanted, 
and  after  leaving  the  colony  the  same  lady  formed 
a  Family  Colonisation  Society  in  London,  which 
did  good  work  in  despatching  suitable  settlers  to 
Australia. 

Previous  to  1848  the  system  of  primary  educa- 
tion had  been  purely  denominational,  and,  al- 
though various  suggestions  had  been  made  for  a 
scheme  of  public  instruction,  for  one  reason  or 
another  no  definite  action  had  been  taken.  In  the 
year  named,  however,  a  committee  of  the  Council 
reported  in  favour  of  the  adoption  of  the  Irish 
National  School  system,  and  an  Act  was  passed 


EDUCATION.  135 

appointing  a  Board  of  National  Education,  and 
also  a  Denominational  School  Board.  The  two 
bodies  did  not  work  in  harmony,  and  the  national 
schools  were  vehemently  opposed  by  the  ministers 
of  most  religious  bodies.  The  same  year  saw 
the  birth  of  the  first  Australian  university.  The 
hopes  of  colonists  now  soared  high,  and  aimed  at 
equality  with  the  mother  country,  not  only  in 
material,  but  also  in  intellectual  advantages.  "  I 
believe,"  said  Wentworth,  when  speaking  on  the  Bill 
authorising  the  foundation  of  the  Sydney  University, 
"  that  from  the  pregnant  womb  of  this  institution  will 
arise  a  long  line  of  illustrious  names — of  statesmen, 
of  patriots,  of  philanthropists,  of  philosophers,  of 
poets,  of  heroes,  and  of  sages,  who  will  shed  a  death- 
less halo  not  only  on  their  country,  but  on  that 
university  we  are  now  about  to  call  into  being." 

But  if  these  brilliant  anticipations  were  to  be 
fulfilled,  the  colonist  must  first  obtain  full  political 
rights,  and  in  the  struggle  for  political  freedom 
Wentworth  again  appeared  as  the  champion  of  the 
better  aspirations  of  the  people.  Earl  Grey's  des- 
patch, authorising  the  separation  of  Port  Phillip,  had 
arrived  at  the  end  of  1 847,  and  in  the  same  document 
was  sketched  an  amended  constitution,  which  it  was 
proposed  to  introduce  into  New  South  Wales  as  soon 
as  practicable.  Two  houses  were  to  be  established, 
one  nominated  by  the  Crown  and  the  other  repre- 
sentative, but  the  people  were  to  elect  Municipal 
Councils  who,  in  their  turn,  were  to  be  the  con- 
stituents of  the  Legislature. 

It  was  hinted  that  there  should  be  some  method 


AGITATION  FOR   SELF-GOVERNMENT.  137 

"  for  enabling  the  various  legislatures  of  the  several 
Australian  colonies  to  co-operate  with  each  other  in 
the  enactment  of  such  laws  as  may  be  necessary  for 
regulating  the  interests  common  to  those  possessions 
collectively  ;  such,  for  example,  are  the  imposition 
of  duties  of  import  and  export,  the  conveyance  of 
letters,  and  the  formation  of  roads,  railway,  or  other 
internal  communications  traversing  any  two  or  more 
of  such  colonies,"  and  the  creation  of  such  a  central 
legislative  authority  was  foreshadowed,  although  no 
details  were  stated.  This  despatch  was  published  by 
Fitzroy,  and  was  not  unfavourably  received.  In 
January,  1848,  a  huge  public  meeting  was  held  in 
Sydney,  at  which  all  the  leaders  of  the  people  for 
once  united  in  vigorous  opposition  to  the  proposed 
alteration  in  the  constitution.  It  was  asserted  that 
such  a  measure  would  have  the  effect  of  depriving 
the  colonists  of  the  elective  franchise,  which  had 
only  been  obtained  after  a  severe  fight,  and  was  de- 
clared by  Mr.  Stuart  Donaldson,  one  of  the  speakers, 
to  be  "  our  unalienable  right  as  British  subjects." 
Earl  Grey  bowed  to  the  storm  and  consented  to 
withdraw  his  proposals,  simply  introducing  a 
measure  enabling  the  colonies  to  create  two 
chambers,  should  they  so  desire.  But  the  emphatic 
protest  which  this  scheme  had  called  forth  awoke 
the  authorities  in  England  to  the  importance  of  the 
subject  and  the  earnestness  of  the  desires  of  the 
settlers,  and  the  whole  question  of  the  Australian 
constitutions  seemed  so  serious  that  the  Com- 
mittee of  the  Privy  Council  on  Trade  and  Planta- 
tions was  requested  to  report.  After  a  few  months' 


138      THE   STRUGGLE  FOR  FREE  INSTITUTIONS. 

deliberation  they  advised  that  as  free  scope  as 
possible  for  public  opinion  in  Australia  should  be 
permitted,  and  that  an  enabling  measure,  giving  the 
colonies  power  to  devise  their  own  constitutions 
within  certain  broad  limits,  should  be  passed. 
Although  they  deemed  municipal  institutions  an 
essential  to  effective  government,  and  "the  only 
practicable  security  against  the  danger  of  undue 
centralisation,"  it  would  be  impolitic  in  the  present 
temper  of  the  colonies  to  "  force  unwelcome  duties  " 
on  them  "  under  the  name  of  franchises." 

Instead  of  direct  taxation  through  District  Councils, 
it  was  suggested  that  any  balance  of  the  land  revenue 
received  from  each  district,  remaining  over  after 
charges  for  immigration  had  been  met,  should  be 
handed  to  the  local  councils  for  expenditure  on  the 
construction  of  public  works.  They  strongly  urged 
"  that  there  should  be  one  tariff  common  to  all " 
the  settlements,  "so  that  goods  might  be  carried 
from  one  into  the  other  with  the  same  absolute 
freedom  as  between  any  two  adjacent  counties  in 
England."  All  common  questions  were  to  be  settled 
by  "  a  general  assembly  of  Australia,"  presided  over 
by  the  Governor  of  New  South  Wales  in  his  capacity 
of  Governor-General.  The  necessary  revenue  for 
this  central  authority  was  to  be  obtained  by  "  an 
equal  percentage  from  the  revenue  received  in  all 
the  colonies." 

The  English  Government  expressed  the  intention 
of  immediately  introducing  a  Bill  based  on  the 
report,  but  troubles  nearer  home  delayed  the  matter 
till  early  in  1850. 


AGITATION  FOR   SELF-GOVERNMENT.  139 

When  the  Australian  Colonies  Government  Bill 
was  read  the  second  time  in  the  House  of  Commons 
the  debate  was  a  keen  one.  Various  amendments 
were  proposed,  and  the  franchise  was  lowered.  All 
the  colonies  were  expressly  disabled  from  interfer- 
ing with  the  Crown  lands  and  the  revenue  derived 
therefrom.  The  existing  council  was  convened  in 
March,  in  order  to  pass  the  measures  required  to 
give  effect  to  the  new  arrangements,  but  Wentworth 
condemned  the  proposed  constitution  because  by  it 
"  all  material  powers  exercised  for  centuries  by  the 
House  of  Commons  were  still  withheld."  A  select 
committee  of  the  existing  council  was  obtained, 
which  in  its  report  protested  against  the  proposals 
on  the  grounds  that  all  revenue  and  taxation  should 
be  entirely  in  the  hands  of  the  Colonial  Legislature  ; 
that  all  offices  of  trust  and  emolument  should  be 
filled  by  the  Governor  and  Executive  Council,  un- 
fettered by  instructions  from  the  Minister  for  the 
Colonies  ;  that  plenary  powers  of  legislation  should  be 
conferred  on  the  Colonial  Legislature ;  it  concluded 
by  "  solemnly  protesting  against  these  wrongs,  and 
declaring  and  insisting  on  these  our  undoubted 
rights ;  we  leave  the  redress  of  the  one  and  the 
assertion  of  the  other  to  the  people  whom  we  re- 
present and  the  legislature  which  shall  follow  us." 

An  electoral  Bill  was  passed  providing  thirty-six 
representative  and  eighteen  nominee  members  for  the 
new  Council  of  New  South  Wales,  and  twenty  elected 
and  ten  nominee  members  for  Victoria,  which,  on 
their  election,  was  to  become  a  separate  colony.  The 
.lowering  of  the  franchise  produced  a  strange  altera- 


140      THE   STRUGGLE   FOR   FREE  INSTITUTIONS. 

tion  in  public  feeling,  and  at  the  election  of  1851 
Wentworth's  name  stood  last  instead  of  first  of  the 
three  members  for  Sydney ;  John  Dunmore  Lang 
leading  the  poll.  The  new  council  met  on  the  i6th 
of  October  and  reaffirmed  the  protest  of  the  defunct 
body.  In  their  report  they  stated  that  they  were 
"  prepared  upon  the  surrender  to  the  Colonial  Legis- 
lature of  the  entire  management  of  all  our  revenues, 
territorial  as  well  as  general,  in  which  we  include 
mines  of  every  description,  and  upon  the  establish- 
ment of  a  constitution  similar  in  its  outline  to  that  of 
Canada,  to  assume  and  provide  for  the  whole  cost  of 
our  internal  government,  whether  civil  or  military." 
The  petition  was  carried  and  transmitted  by  Sir 
Charles  Fitzroy  to  the  Secretary  of  State  as  expressing 
"  the  general  and  deliberate  opinion  of  the  most  loyal, 
respectable,  and  influential  members  of  the  com- 
munity." Sir  John  Pakington  was  at  this  time 
Secretary  of  State,  and  he  at  once  fell  in  with  the 
views  so  unmistakably  expressed.  In  his  despatch 
to  the  Governor  he  stated  that  the  English  Govern- 
ment were  "  ready  to  accede  to  the  wishes  of  the 
Council  and  of  the  colony  in  a  spirit  of  entire  con- 
fidence." The  Council  was  invited  to  frame  a  con- 
stitution for  itself,  and  the  whole  of  the  revenues 
demanded  would  be  surrendered  by  the  Crown  as 
soon  as  the  contemplated  changes  in  the  constitution 
had  been  effected.  Transportation  to  Australia  was 
to  be  finally  abolished,  and  the  despatch  closed  with 
the  expression  of  the  hope  that  the  proposed  enact- 
ment "  will  not  only  tend  to  promote  the  welfare  and 
prosperity  of  the  great  colony  .  .  .  but  also  to  cement 


TRANSPORTATION  ABOLISHED.  141 

and  perpetuate  the  ties  of  kindred  affection  and  mutual 
confidence  which  connect  its  people  with  that  of  the 
United  Kingdom." 

Some  time  elapsed  before  the  details  of  the  new 
constitution  could  be  finally  settled,  but  Sir  John 
Pakington's  despatch  irrevocably  conceded  the  prin- 
ciple that  the  Australian  Colonies,  on  showing  their 
ability  to  do  so,  had  the  right  to  demand  the  control 
and  management  of  their  own  affairs.  In  the  fore- 
going pages  it  has  been  shown  how,  step  by  step,  the 
power  of  the  people  advanced,  how  the  taint  of  crime 
rapidly,  though  almost  imperceptibly,  disappeared 
from  the  popular  assemblies.  The  old  divisions  of 
society  had  gone,  and  instead  of  "  emancipated  "  and 
"  free  "  a  united  people  is  to  be  seen  vehemently  con- 
tending for  those  same  rights  and  privileges  in  this 
distant  possession  which  they  would  have  been  enjoy- 
ing had  they  remained  or  been  born  in  the  mother 
country.  To  the  early  political  life  of  this  settlement  at 
the  antipodes  was  given  peculiar  interest  by  the  strong 
individuality  and  remarkable  ability  of  the  leading 
characters.  Wentworth  fired  with  love  of  his  native 
country,  and  embittered  by  the  feeling  that  the  land 
of  his  birth  was  tainted  by  foreign  crime,  first  made 
his  appearance  as  the  champion  of  the  "  freed  "  whom 
he  longed  to  make  free,  but,  as  the  colony  grew,  he 
perceived  that  the  future  was  too  grand  to  be  bound 
up  with  the  personal  hopes  of  a  section  of  the  inhabi- 
tants. As  the  struggle  for  the  elective  principle 
progressed  he  became  aware  that,  if  Australia  was  to 
be  a  mighty  nation,  higher  ideals  than  those  of  the 
mob  must  lead  her.  Although  extremely  violent  in 


142      THE   STRUGGLE   FOR   FREE   INSTITUTIONS. 

his  language  he  ever  professed  to  keep  within  the 
bounds  of  parliamentary  usage ;  and  his  love  ot 
England  and  her  liberties  was  only  eclipsed  by  the 
love  he  bore  the  land  of  his  birth.  But  when  the 
fighting  days  were  over,  and,  the  victory  being  won,  it 
was  necessary  to  order  affairs  of  state  with  caution 
and  moderation,  he  lost  the  marvellous  hold  he  had 
previously  exercised  over  the  lower  classes  of  the 
community,  and,  although  always  a  power  in  the 
council,  he  ceased  to  be  a  popular  idol. 

Perhaps  the  next  most  prominent  figure  at  this  time 
was  John  Dunmore  Lang,  a  Presbyterian  minister  and 
polemical  politician.  An  advocate  of  the  severance 
of  the  British  connection,  violent  and  coarse  in 
language  though  undeniably  able  and  eloquent,  he 
took  the  place  which  Wentworth  lost  in  the  affection 
of  a  section  of  the  masses.  '  Always  mixed  up  in 
transactions  which  his  opponents  called  by  very 
ugly  names,  he  occupied  a  unique  position  on  the 
political  stage  and  a  volume  could  be  filled  with  an 
account  of  his  extraordinary  vicissitudes  and  curious 
dealings. 

Robert  Lowe,  afterwards  Lord  Sherbrooke,  was 
another  participator  in  the  stirring  events  attending 
the  birth  of  responsible  government.  A  man  of  great 
gifts  he  had  many  admirers  but  few  friends.  First 
entering  the  Council  as  a  personal  friend  and  nominee 
of  Gipps,  he  soon  became  that  governor's  most 
dangerous  opponent,  and  Wentworth  aptly  described 
him,  when  at  the  elections  of  1848  he  said — "Long 
ago  I  felt  the  deep  conviction  that,  having  had  to  bear 
his  praises,  I  must  soon  be  doomed  to  bear  his  bitterest 


DBAS   THOMPSON.  143 

and  most  envenomed  censure.     The  principle  of  the 
man's  life  is  change." 

But  not  the  least  noticeable  figure  in  the  group  of 
leaders  was  that  of  Deas  Thompson,  the  Colonial 
Secretary.  With  wonderful  tact  at  a  most  difficult 
period  he  successfully  conducted  the  Government 
business  in  a  sensitive  and  hostile  council,  and  in  the 
measures  framed  under  his  hand,  a  broadness  of  view 
and  a  keen  appreciation  of  the  people  he  had  to  deal 
with  is  everywhere  visible.  His  role  was  not  as 
brilliant  as  that  of  the  champions  of  popular  rights, 
but  his  influence  as  a  high-minded  and  honourable 
gentleman  was  extensive. 


X. 


THE  DISCOVERY  OF  GOLD. 


THE  extraordinary  activity  displayed  in  the  social 
and  political  development  of  New  South  Wales  at 
this  period  is  the  more  remarkable  as  the  commercial 
and  financial  prospects  were  not  encouraging.  The 
colony  had  never  really  recovered  from  the  crisis  of 
1843.  Confidence  had  then  been  destroyed,  and 
the  credit,  so  essential  to  business  transactions  of 
any  magnitude,  had  received  a  shock  from  which 
it  could  only  be  restored  by  years  of  patient  and 
steady  industry.  Then  the  sudden  cessation  of 
assigned  labour  combined  with  the  emigration  to 
California,  had  been  a  severe  ordeal,  and  many  persons 
prophesied  the  speedy  collapse  of  the  whole  settle- 
ment. Looking  back  through  the  records  of  these 
troublous  times,  it  seems  strange  that  some  people 
were  not  tempted  to  seek  for  gold  during  the  years  of 
depression.  It  was  known  by  many  that  the  precious 
metal  had  been  found  in  the  Bathurst  district,  and 
from  time  to  time  since  the  very  early  days  of  occu- 
pation, reports  had  been  made  to  the  authorities  con- 


COUNT   STRZLECKI — REV.    W.    B.    CLARKE.      145 

cerning  the  discovery  of  gold  in  various  places.  As 
far  back  as  1823  there  is  an  entry  in  the  field-book 
of  a  surveyor  named  James  McBrian,  under  date  of 
February  the  i6th,  which  runs:  "At  eight  chains, 
fifty  links  to  river,  and  marked  gum-tree — at  this 
place  I  found  numerous  particles  of  gold  in  the  sand 
and  in  the  hills  adjacent  to  the  river,"  the  river  referred 
to  being  the  Fish  River,  about  fifteen  miles  from 
Bathurst,  and  not  far  from  the  discoveries  of  Hargraves. 

Again,  in  1839,  Count  Strzlecki  found  gold,  and 
informed  the  Governor,  Sir  George  Gipps ;  and, 
although  he  was  requested  by  the  authorities  to 
suppress,  as  far  as  he  was  able,  the  knowledge  of  his 
discovery,  for  fear  of  gold  fever  rendering  the  convicts 
unmanageable  and  disturbing  the  settled  industries  of 
the  country,  there  can  be  little  doubt  that  the  fact  was 
disclosed  to  a  large  number  of  people. 

In  1841  the  Rev.  W.  B.  Clarke  found  gold  in  the 
Macquarie  Valley  and  the  Vale  of  Clwydd,  and  stated 
that  he  was  convinced  that  the  metal  would  be  met 
with  in  large  quantities  in  various  localities  through- 
out New  South  Wales,  and,  for  some  time  previous  to 
185 1,  a  shepherd  named  McGregor  had,  while  tending 
his  flocks,  collected  particles  of  gold,  while  other 
persons  had  not  unfrequently  come  across  small 
deposits. 

But,  in  spite  of  all  these  incidents,  it  would  seem 
that  the  possibility  of  Australia  being  possessed  of 
this  kind  of  wealth  never  seriously  occupied  men's 
minds.  It  was  not  for  some  seven  years  after  the 
acute  stage  of  the  commercial  crisis  that  any  general 
interest  in  the  gold  discoveries  was  shown,  and  then 

ii 


146  THE  DISCOVERY  OF  GOLD. 

attention  was  drawn  to  the  matter,  not  by  the 
prophecies  of  geologists,  but  by  the  conviction  of  a 
man  named  Hargraves,  that  the  country,  so  like  in 
character  the  great  gold-bearing  places  in  Cali- 
fornia, would,  in  all  probability,  be  also  auriferous. 
The  story  is  a  curious  one.  Hargraves  was  one  of 
the  numerous  adventurers  who  left  the  colony  in  1848 
for  California,  but  the  first  thing  which  impressed  him 
on  his  arrival  was  the  great  resemblance  between  the 
gold  country  and  some  of  the  places  which  were  well 
known  to  him  in  Australia.  The  more  he  pondered 
upon  the  likeness,  the  stronger  grew  the  conviction 
that  there  must  be  gold  too,  near  his  old  home.  Each 
day  he  felt  more  forcibly  impelled  to  return  to 
Australia  and  test  the  accuracy  of  his  surmises.  At 
last  he  could  resist  the  inclination  no  longer,  and 
on  the  1 2th  of  February,  1851,  his  enterprise  was 
rewarded,  and  he  succeeded  in  finding  gold  in  the 
Lewis  Ponds  and  Summerhill  Creeks,  the  very  spots 
which  had  been  in  his  mind  during  his  sojourn  in 
California. 

Having  fully  assured  himself  of  the  payable 
character  of  the  field,  Hargraves  approached  the 
Government.  He  at  first  asked  for  a  reward,  on  receipt 
of  which  he  expressed  his  willingness  to  point  out 
the  places  at  which  he  had  experimented,  but  Deas 
Thompson  declined  to  entertain  any  other  proposal 
than  that  the  localities  should  be  shown  and  proved 
to  Mr.  Stuchbury.  the  geological  surveyor,  and  that 
Hargraves  should  trust  to  the  honour  of  the  Govern- 
ment for  an  adequate  reward  after  his  discoveries  had 
been  confirmed  and  their  value  ascertained.  This 


THE   GOLD  FEVER.  147 

offer  was  accepted,  and  on  the  6th  of  May  it  was 
announced  in  Sydney  that  a  gold-field  had  been 
found.  Three  weeks  later  Mr.  Stuchbury  wrote  to 
the  Colonial  Secretary  that  "  the  number  of  people  at 
the  diggings  on  the  Summerhill  Creek  is  daily  in- 
creasing upon  an  extent  of  about  a  mile.  I  estimate 
the  number  to  be  not  less  than  1,000,  and,  with  few 
exceptions,  they  appear  to  be  doing  well,  many  of 
them  getting  large  quantities  of  gold."  The  rush  to 
the  gold-fields  before  long  seriously  affected  other 
industries,  and  the  apprehensions  of  collapse  from 
stagnation  were  converted  into  fears  of  ruin  from  too 
great  speculation.  Indeed,  it  was  urged  upon  the 
Governor  by  some  of  those  engaged  in  pastoral  and 
agricultural  pursuits,  that  martial  law  should  be 
proclaimed,  and  all  gold-diggings  peremptorily  pro- 
hibited, in  order  that  the  inducement,  which  seemed 
so  irresistible,  for  persons  to  quit  their  ordinary  occu- 
pations might  be  removed.  It  is  needless  to  say  that 
such  an  absurd  request  was  not  entertained,  Fitzroy 
expressing  his  opinion  that  to  try  to  stop  the  rush  to 
the  diggings  would  be  as  futile  "  as  to  attempt  to 
stop  the  influx  of  the  tide."  Nevertheless,  there  can 
be  no  doubt  that  in  some  quarters  the  exodus  of 
labourers  from  the  more  settled  industries  of  the 
country  was  very  keenly  felt.  Stations  in  some  cases 
were  left  without  hands,  and  farmers  saw  their  crops 
spoiling  because  they  could  not  obtain  sufficient  men 
to  harvest  them. 

When  the  rush  first  commenced,  the  Council  was 
not  in  session,  so  the  new  conditions  had  to  be  pro- 
vided for  by  the  executive.  Deas  Thompson,  the 


148  THE   DISCOVERY  OF  GOLD. 

Colonial  Secretary,  drew  up  rules  for  the  regulation  of 
the  gold-fields,  imposing  a  license  fee  of  thirty  shillings 
per  month  on  all  persons  digging  gold.  The  revenue 
arising  from  this  source  was  promptly  placed  at  the 
disposal  of  the  Colonial  Government  to  meet  the 
extraordinary  expenditure  consequent  on  the  changed 
circumstances  of  the  colony,  and,  when  the  Council 
met,  it  was  considered  that  Deas  Thompson's  regula- 
tions had  worked  so  satisfactorily  that  there  was  no 
need  to  make  any  alterations.  Only  one  serious 
disorder  threatened.  At  the  Turon  field  four  hundred 
armed  diggers  prepared  to  resist  payment  of  the 
license  fee ;  but  the  Government  at  once  despatched 
half  a  company  of  the  nth  Regiment  with  rein- 
forcements of  police  to  Sofala,  and  showed  such 
a  firm  determination  to  maintain  the  law  that  the 
turbulent  spirits  quailed,  and  the  rioters  melted  away 
without  causing  further  trouble.  It  is  not  surprising 
that  ordinary  methods  of  gaining  a  living  became 
unattractive  in  the  face  of  some  of  the  early  finds  of 
gold.  He  would  indeed  be  a  cold-blooded  philosopher 
whose  mind  would  not  be  inflamed  by  such  a  discovery 
as  that  made  by  a  Dr.  Kerr  on  the  Turon.  This 
gentleman,  or  rather  a  native  employed  on  his  station, 
discovered,  accidently,  a  lump  of  gold  weighing  about 
one  hundred  and  six  pounds,  and  worth,  approxi- 
mately, £4,500  ;  another  mass  of  gold  was  unearthed, 
in  November,  1858,  at  Burrandong,  near  Orange, 
which,  after  melting  at  the  mint,  yielded  £4,389 
worth  of  the  metal ;  and  the  "  Brennan  "  nugget,  which 
was  sold  in  Sydney,  in  1851,  realised  £1,156;  while 
numerous  other  finds  of  a  similar  character  were  quite 


MINERS  EARNINGS.  149 

sufficient  to  tempt  even  the  most  cautious  to  go  and 
try  their  fortunes  at  the  diggings.  In  the  early  days, 
moreover,  apart  from  the  extraordinary  discoveries 
of  huge  lumps,  good  results  were  obtained  by  the 
greater  number  of  the  miners  on  the  alluvial  workings. 
In  the  "Quarterly  Review"  for  September,  1852,  a 
writer  asserted  that  in  New  South  Wales  "  the  average 
monthly  earnings  of  gold-diggers  amounted  to  ^31 
35.,"  and  supported  this  estimate  by  the  evidence  of 
the  commissioners  on  the  various  fields  who  commonly 
spoke  of  £i  per  day  as  the  average  result  of  the 
miner's  labour.  The  general  excitement  and  unsettled 
state  of  the  colony  caused  very  great  discomfort  and 
loss  to  those  who  had,  from  one  reason  or  another,  to 
remain  at  their  ordinary  avocations,  for  the  enhanced 
value  of  the  principal  articles  of  common  consumption 
made  serious  inroads  on  the  pockets  of  all  who  reaped 
no  direct  advantage  from  the  mines.  A  special  "  gold 
allowance"  was  paid  to  public  servants,  to  enable 
them  to  meet  the  changed  circumstances,  and  the 
dearth  of  labour  caused  a  somewhat  similar  advance 
in  remuneration  to  persons  in  private  employ.  Wheat 
rose  between  1850  and  1855  from  4.5.  to  i6s.  $d.  per 
bushel,  tea  from  is.  lod.  to  2s.  5d.  per  lb.,  potatoes 
from  73.  to  2 is.  4d.  per  cwt,  and  beer  from  2s.  gd.  to 
43.  /d.  per  gallon.  On  the  gold-fields  prices  of  the 
commonest  things  reached  prodigious  figures,  and  as 
the  roads  became  cut  up  the  cost  of  carriage  rose 
from  £2  los.  to  £30  per  ton.  The  condition  of  things 
sketched  above  did  not  continue  for  very  long ; 
what  has  been  fitly  described  as  the  ""allure-en 
dazzle  of  the  gold-seeker's  life "  gradually  Hiid  he, 


150  THE   DISCOVERY   OF  GOLD. 

dimmed  by  the  privation,  discomfort,  and  disappoint- 
ment which,  as  the  numbers  of  miners  increased,  and 
the  alluvial  beds  became  exhausted  in  the  majority 
of  instances,  were  all    that  was  experienced  on  the 
gold-fields ;  in  consequence  people  returned  to  their 
former  occupations  in  less  fascinating  but  more  safe 
and  permanent  paths  of  industry.     But  the  work  of 
the   great  discovery  had    been   accomplished   in   the 
first  few  years  following   1851.     Not  only  had  new 
life  and    fresh    impetus  been   given  to  enterprise  in 
New    South   Wales,   but   an    entirely    new   class   of 
labour  had  been  attracted  to  the  province,  bringing 
with  it  a   far  higher  standard    of  living   than    that 
previously    obtaining,    and    thus    permanently    im- 
proving   the    condition    of   workers   for   the   future. 
The  thirst  for  gold  and   feverish  excitement  which 
accompanied    the   birth   of  the    mining    industry  in 
Australia,  was    probably  all   the  more   acute  owing 
to  the  extreme  depression  which  immediately  pre- 
ceded it,  for  it  is  a  somewhat  remarkable  fact  that, 
although  only  a  small  portion  of  the  auriferous  area 
of  the  continent  of  Australia  has  been  explored,  and  a 
still  smaller  portion  properly  developed,  so  that  the 
chances  of  marvellous  finds  are  as  great  as  ever,  there 
has  never  since  the  rush  between  1851  and  1857  been 
anything   resembling   the   overmastering   fascination 
which  the  search  for  the  precious  metal  at  first  exer- 
cised.    Of  course,  every  now  and  then  there  is  what 
is  called  commonly  a  "  boom  "  in  mining  circles,  but 
no  considerable  number  of  persons  have  been  attracted 
r-Tn  other  pursuits. 


XI. 


RESPONSIBLE    GOVERNMENT. 
(I853-I885.) 

IN  1853,  on  the  receipt  of  Sir  John  Pakington's 
despatch,  a  committee  of  the  Council,  of  which  Went- 
worth  was  the  guiding  spirit,  was  appointed  to  draft 
a  Constitution  Bill.  It  was  not  long  in  bringing  up  its 
report,  which,  however,  met  with  considerable  opposi- 
tion both  in  the  Council  and  from  the  people  outside. 
Wentworth  desired  to  make  the  Upper  Chamber 
hereditary,  after  the  example  of  the  House  of  Lords, 
and  provided  for  a  species  of  colonial  peerage,  the 
the  only  point  which  raised  much  comment ;  but 
public  meetings  vigorously  protested  against  the  in- 
troduction of  the  hereditary  principle,  and  eventually, 
after  a  hard  fight,  Wentworth  consented  to  withdraw 
this  particular  arrangement,  and  substitute  a  nomi- 
nated chamber.  He  gave  in  with  reluctance,  and 
only  because  he  feared  the  wreck  of  the  whole  scheme, 
were  he  to  adhere  to  his  opinion.  His  contention 
had  been  that  some  special  inducement  must  be  offered 
to  successful  persons  to  remain  in  the  colonies  ;  "  For 
who  would  stay  here  if  he  could  avoid  it?"  said  he, 


152  RESPONSIBLE   GOVERNMENT. 

"  who  with  ample  means  would  ever  return,  if  ever  he 
left  these  shores,  or  identify  himself  with  the  colony, 
so  long  as  selfishness  and  ignorant  democracy  held 
sway  ?  Yet  what  a  great  country  would  those  have 
to  live  in  if  higher  and  nobler  principles  prevailed  ! 
Blessed  by  the  bounteous  gifts  of  Providence,  it  affords 
in  its  illimitable  tracts  happy  homes  for  millions  yet 
unborn."  Wentworth's  forecast  has  been  singularly 
verified,  and  one  of  the  greatest  misfortunes  of  the 
colonies  at  the  present  day  is  that  no  sooner  do 
Australians  accumulate  wealth,  than  they  fly  to 
Europe  to  dissipate  it.  Whether  his  remedy  would 
have  been  effective  or  not,  it  is  impossible  to  say,  but 
few  will  deny  that  there  is  something  lacking  in 
colonial  society,  which  is  essential  to  retain  those  from 
whom  it  should  receive  its  greatest  advancement  and 
support. 

On  December  2ist  a  Constitution  Bill  was  passed, 
and  forwarded  to  the  Secretary  of  State  for  the  sanc- 
tion of  the  Imperial  Parliament,  and,  after  a  somewhat 
stormy  passage  through  the  House  of  Commons,  the 
measure  became  law.  In  1856  the  old  council  was 
dissolved,  having  first  made  the  necessary  arrange- 
ments for  the  election  of  the  new  assembly,  and  on 
May  22nd  the  first  Parliament  under  responsible 
government  was  opened  by  Sir  William  Denison. 
There  were  two  chambers,  the  Upper  House,  called 
the  Legislative  Council,  consisting  of  members  nomi- 
nated by  the  Crown,  and  the  Legislative  Assembly, 
which  contained  fifty -four  elected  members.  The 
first  Ministry  included  Sir  Stuart  Alexander  Donald- 
son, as  Colonial  Secretary  and  Premier  ;  Mr.  Thomas 


CONSTITUTION  BILL   PASSED.  153 

Holt,  Treasurer ;  Sir  William  Manning,  Attorney- 
General  ;  Mr.  J.  B.  Darvall,  Solicitor-General ;  and 
Mr.  W.  C.  Mayne  as  Representative  of  the  Govern- 
ment in  the  Legislative  Council.  The  principles  of 
the  Constitution,  as  originally  laid  down,  have  never 
been  altered,  but  there  have  been  some  changes  in 
minor  details.  In  New  South  Wales,  as  in  the  other 
Australian  colonies,  the  democratic  element  was  in- 
creasing, and  before  long  the  Electoral  Act  was 
amended  and  the  franchise  reduced  to  practically 
manhood  suffrage.  At  the  same  time,  the  old  system 
of  voting  was  abolished,  and  all  elections  have  since 
been  conducted  by  means  of  the  ballot-box.  Various 
other  amendments  of  the  Electoral  Act  have  taken 
place  from  time  to  time,  and  the  few  restrictions  of 
political  privilege  which  remained  have  been  removed. 
The  Legislative  Council  now  contains  sixty-seven 
members — though  there  is  no  fixed  limit  of  numbers — 
and  there  are  one  hundred  and  forty-one  members  of 
the  Assembly.  The  tenure  of  a  seat  in  the  Council 
is  for  life,  and  the  only  qualification  required  of  mem- 
bers is  that  they  shall  be  twenty-one  years  of  age, 
and  naturalised  or  natural  born  subjects  of  the  Queen, 
while  the  qualification  of  the  Lower  House  is  practi- 
cally the  same.  The  representatives  of  the  people 
now  receive  £300  per  annum  each,  in  return  for  the 
services  which  they  are  supposed  to  render  to  the 
country,  but  members  of  the  Council  are  unpaid  with 
the  exception  of  the  privilege  of  travelling  free  on  the 
State  Railways,  which  is  enjoyed  by  members  of  both 
Houses.  The  duration  of  the  Assembly  is  limited  to 
three  years,  and  the  only  condition  at  present  neces- 


154  RESPONSIBLE   GOVERNMENT. 

sary  to  obtain  elective  rights  is  six  months'  residence 
before  the  rolls  are  compiled. 

Within  the  first  five  years  of  responsible  govern- 
ment, under  the  guidance  of  Sir  John  Robertson 
elaborate  regulations  were  framed  for  the  alienation 
and  occupation  of  Crown  lands.  The  circumstances 
of  the  colony  had  been  greatly  altered  by  the  discovery 
of  gold,  and  the  question  of  land  settlement  had  to  be 
dealt  with  in  an  entirely  new  spirit  to  meet  the  wants 
of  a  class  of  a  different  type  to  that  contemplated  by 
the  framers  of  former  enactments.  The  new  scheme 
excited  great  public  interest,  and  a  monster  torchlight 
meeting  was  held  in  Wynyard  Square  to  discuss  the 
land  question  generally,  but  more  particularly  to  con- 
demn the  proposals  which  had  been  made.  A  minis- 
terial crisis  followed,  and  the  Government  were  beaten 
by  a  large  majority  on  the  question  of  "  free  selection 
before  survey."  The  Governor  was  urged  to  dissolve 
Parliament,  but  this  he  declined  to  do,  and  before  long 
public  sentiment  underwent  a  complete  change  ;  the 
cry  of  "  free  selection  before  survey "  was  made  the 
watchword  of  the  democratic  party  ;  and  the  measure 
on  its  re-introduction  consequently  became  law.  The 
Act  of  1 86 1  was  intended  to  facilitate  the  settle- 
ment of  an  industrial  agricultural  population,  side 
by  side  with  the  pastoral  tenants,  by  means  of  free 
selection  in  limited  areas.  To  this  privilege  was 
attached  the  condition  of  bond-fide  residence,  and 
the  land  was  to  be  sold  at  a  fixed  price,  payable  by 
instalments,  or  partly  remaining  at  interest.  All 
public  lands,  with  the  reservation  of  existing  rights, 
were  to  be  thrown  open  to  conditional  purchase  before 


QUESTION   OF  LAND   SETTLEMENT.  155 

or  after  survey,  to  all  comers,  in  lots  ranging  in  area 
from  40  to  320  acres.  At  the  same  time  leases  of 
stations  for  pastoral  purposes  were  granted  on 
appraised  rents,  the  tenancy  being  for  a  period  of  five 
years,  on  the  condition  that  such  lease  had  no  power 
to  bar  purchase,  either  conditional  or  by  auction, 
should  any  one  desire  to  become  possessed  of  the 
property.  The  effect  of  this  law  was  an  apparent 
increase  in  agricultural  settlement ;  but,  although  it 
induced  a  large  amount  of  bond-fide  occupation,  the 
power  to  select  allotments  within  the  boundaries  of 
runs,  caused  serious  friction  between  selectors  and  the 
Crown  tenants,  and  without  doubt  led  to  extortion 
and  fraud  on  an  extensive  scale.  Another  result  of 
the  fears  of  indiscriminate  selection  on  their  leasehold 
areas  was  that  the  Crown  tenants,  in  order  to  protect 
their  properties  from  the  inroads  of  free  selectors, 
plunged  into  debt,  money  being  recklessly  borrowed 
for  the  purchase  of  the  freehold  of  the  land  which 
they  were  then  holding  under  lease. 

The  new  Parliament  did  not  confine  its  liberalism 
to  the  administration  of  the  Crown  lands.  Before  it 
had  been  many  years  in  existence  an  Act  was  passed 
abolishing  all  grants  from  the  State  Treasury  in  aid 
of  religious  denominations,  while  a  further  levelling 
measure  found  its  place  on  the  statute  book  in  an  Act 
providing  for  the  abolition  of  the  law  of  primogeni- 
ture. A  peculiar  political  crisis  occurred  at  the  close 
of  the  rule  of  Sir  William  Denison,  over  a  matter  of 
trivial  importance  in  itself,  but  one  which — involving 
the  question  of  the  Royal  prerogative — is  interesting 
as  exemplifying  the  temper  of  the  colonial  legislature 


156  RESPONSIBLE   GOVERNMENT. 

in  its  infancy.  A  grant  of  land  to  a  certain  person 
had  been  recommended  to  the  Governor  by  the 
Secretary  of  State,  but  such  grant  was  distasteful  to 
the  Governor's  ministers,  who  advised  him  that  he 
had  no  power  to  make  the  concession,  and  several 
successive  ministers  declined  to  give  effect  to  it.  The 
Governor  thus  found  himself  in  a  difficult  position,  as 
either  he  must  disregard  the  advice  of  his  responsible 
ministers  or  disobey  the  imperative  commands  of  the 
Secretary  of  State.  Shortly  before  his  departure, 
therefore,  he  applied  for  the  seal  of  the  colony,  for 
the  purpose  of  completing  the  deed  without  minis- 
terial sanction ;  it  was  eventually  yielded  to  him 
by  Mr.  Cowper  and  his  colleagues  under  protest, 
the  members  of  the  Government  at  the  same  time 
tendering  their  resignations.  Denison  used  the  seal 
and  returned  it  to  its  former  custody,  and  also  exer- 
cised his  privilege  of  refusing  to  accept  the  resignations 
of  his  ministers ;  there  the  matter  ended,  for  he 
very  shortly  relinquished  his  office. 

The  material  progress  of  the  colony  had  meanwhile 
been  great.  For  the  first  twenty-three  years  of  the 
settlement's  existence  there  had  been  no  postal 
facilities  whatever,  and  it  was  not  till  1810  that  the 
first  post-office  was  established,  and  even  then  the 
arrangements  were  of  a  most  primitive  character.  In 
1825  an  attempt  was  made  to  improve  the  organisa- 
tion, and  tenders  were  called  for  the  conveyance  of 
mails  between  the  principal  centres  of  population  ; 
but  the  charges  for  transmission  and  delivery  were 
extremely  high,  and  varied  according  to  the  distance 
the  letter  or  packet  was  carried,  and  the  difficulty  of 


THE  FIRST  RAILWAY.  157 

access  to  the  recipient.  Twelve  years  afterwards  pre- 
payment of  postage  by  means  of  stamped  covers  was 
instituted,  and  in  1 849  the  whole  of  the  postal  arrange- 
ments were  remodelled,  the  rates  greatly  reduced,  and 
an  agitation  in  favour  of  more  regular  communication 
with  Great  Britain  commenced.  Three  years  later  a 
contract  was  let  for  a  monthly  steam  mail  service  be- 
tween Sydney  and  England,  the  time  for  the  passage 
being  limited  to  fifty-eight  days.  This  was  a  great 
advance  but  the  steamers  were  very  irregular  and 
scarcely  ever  up  to  time. 

Macquarie's  energy  in  road-making  had  provided 
access  to  many  districts ;  but  the  wants  of  the  com- 
munity had  so  greatly  increased  that  in  1846  a  move- 
ment in  favour  of  railway  communication  received 
strong  support.  A  meeting  was  held  in  Sydney  to 
promote  the  construction  of  a  line  to  connect  the 
metropolis  by  rail  with  the  city  of  Goulburn,  and  two 
years  later  a  company  was  formed  with  a  capital  of 
^100,000  having  for  its  object  the  construction  of 
lines  to  Parramatta  and  Liverpool,  with  a  possible 
extension  in  course  of  time  to  Bathurst  and  Goulburn. 
The  first  sod  of  the  first  railway  in  the  Australasian 
colonies  was  turned  in  1850  by  the  Hon.  Mrs.  Keith 
Stewart,  the  daughter  of  the  Governor,  but  the  com- 
pany which  was  constructing  the  line  did  not  prosper, 
and  its  property  was  taken  over  by  the  Government. 
Another  company,  in  1853,  commenced  a  railway  from 
Newcastle  to  Maitland,  but  it  fared  no  better,  and  its 
interest  also  was  before  long  transferred  to  the  State. 
The  works  thenceforward  were  pushed  on  with  vigour, 
and  in  September,  1855,  aline  from  Sydney  to  Parra- 


158  RESPONSIBLE   GOVERNMENT. 

matta  was  declared  open  for  public  traffic.  Fourteen 
years  later  the  extension  to  Goulburn  was  completed, 
and  additions  to  the  railways  have  since  been  made 
nearly  every  year,  although  until  1875  the  progress 
was  not  very  rapid.  An  unnatural  impetus  was  given 
to  all  other  pursuits  by  the  discoveries  of  gold,  and 
agricultural  and  pastoral  enterprises,  as  well  as  manu- 
facturing industries,  made  great  strides.  But  in  1857 
there  were  signs  of  a  reaction,  and  by  1860  the  fictitious 
prosperity  had  entirely  disappeared  ;  work  became 
scarce,  and  there  was  great  distress  amongst  the  labour- 
ing classes,  who  attended  in  large  numbers  before 
Parliament  House  and  clamorously  demanded  the 
assistance  of  the  Government.  At  the  same  time  the 
trades  commenced  an  agitation  for  a  reduction  of  the 
hours  of  labour,  mainly  on  the  plea  that  by  this  means 
work  would  be  available  for  a  greater  number  of  hands, 
and  from  these  beginnings  arose  the  "  eight-hour  move- 
ment "  which  has  since  gained  such  a  firm  hold  on 
Australian  wage-earners.  As  the  local  labour  market 
appeared  to  be  overstocked,  the  amount  voted  by 
Parliament  to  assist  immigration  to  the  colony  was 
reduced  from  £60,000  to  £30,000,  and  gradually 
things  improved.  But  the  gold-rush  had  introduced 
many  unruly  spirits,  and  the  hard  times  which  followed 
led  to  outbreaks  of  lawlessness,  with  which  the  Govern- 
ment found  it  difficult  to  contend. 

The  whole  country  was  terrorised  for  many  years 
following  1860  by  the  exploits  of  bushrangers,  and 
for  a  time  the  executive  appeared  to  be  incapable  of 
dealing  with  these  offenders.  Some  of  the  bush- 
rangers .seized  very  large  amounts  in  gold  and  specie 


BUSHRANGING.  159 

on  the  roads  to  and  from  the  diggings.  In  June,  1862, 
for  instance,  a  daring  raid  was  made  on  the  gold 
escort  on  its  way  from  the  Lachlan,  and  upwards  of 
;£  1 4,000  worth  of  gold  carried  off.  The  mail  coach 
was  constantly  waylaid  and  robbed  in  all  parts  of 
the  colony.  Sometimes  passengers  offered  a  vigorous 
resistance,  and  defeated  their  assailants,  but  more 
often  they  quietly  submitted  to  the  depredations  of 
the  ruffians.  The  country  settlers  became  alarmed. 
Public  meetings  were  held,  and  the  Government 
were  petitioned  to  take  more  active  steps  to  suppress 
highway  robbery,  for  it  was  alleged  that  life  and 
property  on  the  main  roads  in  the  interior  were  at 
present  in  continual  jeopardy.  As  the  months  slipped 
by  and  the  success  of  some  of  the  marauders  excited 
the  fancy  of  other  criminals,  lawless  acts  became 
more  and  more  frequent  and  impudent.  If  a  bush- 
ranger was  caught  he  usually  suffered  the  last  penalty, 
and  when  a  magistrate,  near  Mudgee,  shot  dead  a  bush- 
ranger known  as  Heather,  the  jury  at  the  coroner's 
inquiry  brought  in  a  verdict  of  "justifiable  homicide." 
But  this  severity  had  no  effect,  and  during  the  month 
following  Heather's  death  the  mail  from  Cassilis  to 
Mudgee  was  "  stuck  up  "  and  robbed  under  arms,  and 
in  September  of  the  same  year  a  police  camp  near 
Wombat  was  surprised  by  a  gang  of  bushrangers, 
and  after  a  small  resistance  the  whole  of  the  trooper's 
horses  were  appropriated  by  the  outlaws. 

So  prevalent  had  this  particular  class  of  crime 
become,  that  lengthy  debates  on  the  state  of  lawless- 
ness in  the  country  districts  took  place  in  Parliament, 
and,  as -a  result,  high  rewards  were  offered  for  the 


160  RESPONSIBLE   GOVERNMENT. 

apprehension  or  conviction  of  offenders.  Outlawry 
only  seemed  to  make  the  bushrangers  more  bold,  and 
in  September,  1863,  a  notorious  thief  named  Gilbert, 
and  his  gang,  robbed  a  jeweller's  shop  in  the  heart 
of  Bathurst,  and  a  few  days  later  held  the  township 
of  Canowindra  for  three  days,  and  levied  toll  on  all 
arrivals.  During  1864  mail  and  other  robberies  by 
Hall,  Gilbert,  Morgan,  and  Dunleavy  were  of  daily 
occurrence,  and,  if  the  slightest  opposition  was  offered 
by  their  victims,  they  received  scant  consideration  at 
the  hands  of  the  plunderers.  Morgan  was  especially 
reckless,  and  in  June  fired  on  three  men  one  of  whom 
died  from  his  wounds,  and  within  a  week  shot  a 
serjeant  of  police  dead.  During  a  successful  attack 
on  the  Gundagai  mail,  which  was  travelling  under 
police  escort,  a  severe  encounter  took  place  which 
resulted  in  the  death  of  a  sub-inspector,  the  capture 
of  a  serjeant,  and  the  flight  of  a  constable.  But  it  is 
useless  to  multiply  instances  of  the  crimes  which 
were  being  perpetrated,  for  a  record  of  all  the  out- 
rages which  occurred  at  this  period  would  fill  a  large 
volume.  It  is  sufficient  to  say  that  no  man's  life  or 
property  was  safe.  Fortunately  the  wretched  state 
of  the  country  was  relieved  by  numerous  instances 
of  the  bravery  and  heroism  of  many  of  the  settlers, 
both  men  and  women,  who  displayed  a  courage  and 
determination  to  resist  the  attacks  of  the  bushrangers 
which  more  than  counterbalanced  the  reckless  dare- 
devilry  of  the  murderers.  Eventually  the  law  pre- 
vailed, and  bushranging  and  its  accompanying  evils 
were  completely  stamped  out. 

The  year   1861  was  marked  by  a  disgraceful  out- 


ANTI-CHINESE   AGITATION.  l6l 

break  amongst  the  miners  at  Golden  Point,  Lamb- 
ing Flat.  A  considerable  number  of  Chinese  had 
assembled  at  these  diggings  shortly  after  the  first 
discovery  of  gold,  and  a  hostile  feeling  against  them 
had  arisen  amongst  the  other  miners.  A  monster 
meeting  was  held,  ostensibly  for  the  purpose  of 
deciding  "  whether  Burrangong  is  in  European  or 
Chinese  territory,"  and  resolutions  were  passed  to 
the  effect  that  the  Chinese  must  go,  peaceably  if 
possible,  but,  in  case  they  should  offer  any  resistance, 
steps  were  taken  to  organise  an  armed  force  to  expel 
them.  When  news  of  these  disorderly  proceedings 
reached  Sydney,  a  detachment  of  the  military  was 
despatched  to  Lambing  Flat  to  maintain  order, and  Mr. 
Cowper,  who  was  Premier,  himself  proceeded  to  the 
diggings,  where  he  was  received  with  enthusiasm  by 
the  miners.  But  in  spite  of  his  presence  another  and 
large  anti-Chinese  meeting  was  held,  at  which  a 
miner's  "  Protective  League "  was  formed,  with  the 
avowed  intention  of  ousting  the  Chinamen.  Further 
reinforcements  of  the  military  were  sent  up,  and  this 
so  reduced  the  number  of  soldiers  in  Sydney  that 
the  services  of  the  volunteers  had  to  be  obtained  to 
mount  the  necessary  guards  at  Government  House, 
and  elsewhere.  But  after  peaceful  assurances  had 
been  made  to  Cowper,  it  was  thought  unnecessary  to 
maintain  the  same  military  strength  in  the  vicinity  of 
the  diggings,  and  a  large  number  of  Chinese,  who 
had  previously  been  driven  from  the  mines,  re- 
commenced work. 

Suddenly  an  attack  was  made  by  the   miners  on 
the    Chinese  quarters.     Three   thousand   men    made 

12 


1 62  RESPONSIBLE   GOVERNMENT. 

an  onslaught,  disfigured  by  every  imaginable  act  of 
violence  and  barbarity.  Every  Chinaman  met 
with  was  maimed  or  terribly  maltreated,  their 
tents  were  burned,  their  goods  looted,  and  for  some 
time  the  diggings  were  in  a  state  of  anarchy.  In  hot 
haste  a  mounted  patrol  was  despatched  from  Sydney, 
under  the  charge  of  the  Inspector-General  of  police, 
and  on  its  arrival  an  engagement  took  place,  in 
which  several  of  the  police  were  wounded,  one  rider 
killed,  and  about  a  hundred  others  injured.  Troops 
were  sent  to  support  the  police,  and  order  was 
eventually  restored.  There  was  no  room  for  doubt 
as  to  the  atrocious  characteristics  of  the  attack 
upon  the  Chinamen,  but  strangely  enough  the 
action  of  the  mining  population  received  consider- 
able popular  support.  Anti-Chinese  petitions  were 
poured  in  upon  the  Governor,  and  deputations 
besieged  his  doors.  Meanwhile  the  ringleaders  of 
the  outbreak  had  been  apprehended,  and  lodged  in 
Goulburn  gaol,  and  the  Governor,  though  importuned 
to  intervene  in  their  behalf,  or  to  hold  a  special  in- 
quiry, declined  absolutely  to  take  any  action  in  the 
matter,  asserting  that  the  ordinary  course  of  justice 
would  thresh  out  the  rights  and  wrongs  of  the 
question  much  better  than  any  informal  inquiry. 
This  proved,  however,  to  be  a  mistake,  for  the  same 
failure  of  justice  occurred  on  this  occasion  in  New 
South  Wales,  as  had  taken  place  at  the  trial  of 
Ballarat  insurgents  in  Melbourne ;  when  ten  of 
the  rioters  were  placed  in  the  dock  at  Goulburn 
circuit  court,  the  jury  declined  to  convict. 

Measures  of  a  liberal  character  continued  to  occupy 


ATTACK  ON  THE  DUKE  OF  EDINBURGH.   163 

the  attention  of  Parliament,  and  the  change  which 
has  taken  place  and  is  still  going  on  in  popular 
sentiment  is  clearly  discernible  in  the  early  fate  of 
some  of  the  Bills  which  have  now  become  law.  Thus 
the  idea  of  payment  of  members  of  parliament  for 
their  services  was  in  the  sixties  rejected  by  large 
majorities  ;  a  proposal  for  triennial  parliaments  met 
at  first  with  the  same  fate,  but  the  opposition  to 
it  melted  away  more  rapidly  than  did  the  objection 
to  the  remuneration  of  the  people's  representatives. 

Early  in  1868  the  Duke  of  Edinburgh  visited  the 
colony,  and  met  with  an  unfortunate  mishap  which 
cause  a  violent  outbreak  of  sectarian  and  class  ill- 
feeling.  On  March  the  I2th,  while  the  Duke  was 
attending  a  picnic  at  Clontarf,  a  man  named  O'Farrell 
attempted  to  assassinate  him.  This  naturally  caused 
a  great  commotion  and  the  offender  was  nearly 
lynched  on  the  spot,  being  rescued  with  difficulty 
from  the  violence  of  the  crowd.  Great  indigna- 
tion was  felt  throughout  the  colony  at  the  outrage, 
and  public  meetings  were  held  to  express  sympathy 
with  the  sufferer,  and  abhorrence  of  the  crime.  The 
legislature  was  affected  with  the  wave  of  emotion, 
and  a  Treason  Felony  Act  was  passed  through  the 
Assembly  in  one  day  for  the  purpose  of  providing 
legally  for  the  execution  of  O'Farrell.  The  wildest 
reports  as  to  the  significance  of  the  crime  were 
current,  and,  while  some  held  that  the  deed  was  the 
outcome  of  a  far-reaching  Fenian  conspiracy,  others 
as  strongly  took  the  opposite  view,  and  contended 
that  the  prisoner  was  nothing  but  a  lunatic,  and  that 
the  crime  was  devoid  of  real  motive.  Anyhow,  the 


164  RESPONSIBLE    GOVERNMENT. 

Treason  Felony  Act  became  law,  and  O'Farrell 
was  promptly  hanged,  leaving,  as  a  legacy  to  the 
country,  the  seeds  of  sectarian  strife.  The  Duke  of 
Edinburgh  was  not  very  seriously  wounded,  and 
soon  recovered,  and  when  the  Treason  Felony 
Act  reached  England  it  was  pronounced  repugnant 
to  British  law.  Meanwhile  in  the  colony  it  was  the 
occasion  for  much  mutual  abuse  by  the  leaders  of 
the  people,  and  Orange  and  Roman  Catholic  guilds 
increased  and  multiplied  with  an  amazing  rapidity. 

Previous  to  1 848,  the  system  of  primary  education 
in  force  was  purely  denominational.  Assistance  from 
the  Public  Treasury  was  given  to  the  heads  of  the 
principal  religious  bodies,  in  proportion  to  the  amount 
which  they  themselves  collected  and  expended  upon 
instruction  ;  but  there  were  no  schools  entirely  under 
State  control.  As  early  as  1834,  dissatisfaction  was 
expressed  at  the  prevailing  system,  and  five  years' 
later  a  sum  was  voted  by  the  Council  with  the  object 
of  securing  undenominational  education  for  the 
children  of  those  who  preferred  it ;  the  innovation, 
however,  met  with  some  opposition,  and  little  was 
done  until  1844,  when  a  Committee  of  the  Legisla- 
ture reported  in  favour  of  the  adoption  of  the  Irish 
National  School  system,  and  an  Act  was  passed 
constituting  two  boards,  to  one  of  which  was 
entrusted  the  management  of  denominational,  and 
to  the  other  undenominational  education.  This 
arrangement  was  in  force  until  the  passing  of  the 
Public  Schools  Act  of  1866,  which  provided  for  two 
distinct  classes  of  schools,  though  all  schools  receiv- 
ing aid  from  the  State  were  placed  by  it  nominally 


PUBLIC  INSTRUCTION.  165 

under  a  Council  of  Education.  The  public  schools 
were  entirely  under  the  control  of  this  board,  but 
the  denominational  schools  were  still  managed  to 
some  extent  by  the  various  religious  bodies  to  which 
they  had  hitherto  belonged.  Good  work  was  done 
under  this  system,  although  in  many  respects  it  was 
defective ;  but  the  principle  of  granting  State  aid  to 
religious  schools  became  more  and  more  unpopular, 
and  in  1880,  State  aid  to  denominational  education 
was  finally  abolished. 

By  the  new  Act,  which  is  still  in  force,  the  entire 
educational  system  of  the  colony  was  remodelled ; 
the  Council  of  Education  was  dissolved,  and  a 
Minister  of  Public  Instruction  created  in  its  place. 
Public  schools  to  afford  primary  instruction  to  all 
children  without  sectarian  or  class  distinction  were 
established,  as  well  as  superior  public  schools,  in 
which  a  more  advanced  course  might  be  followed. 
Evening  public  schools  were  formed  for  the  benefit 
of  those  who  need  education  but  cannot  attend  the 
day  schools  ;  and  high  schools  for  boys  and  girls, 
in  which  a  course  of  instruction  is  provided  to 
complete  the  public  school  curriculum  and  prepare 
students  for  the  university.  In  all  State  schools  the 
teaching  is  strictly  non-sectarian  ;  but  "  secular  in- 
struction "  is  supposed  to  include  "  general  religious 
teaching,  as  distinguished  from  dogmatic  or  polemical 
theology."  The  history  of  England  and  of  Australia 
form  part  of  the  course  of  secular  instruction  ;  and 
it  is  further  provided  that  four  hours  during  each 
school  day  shall  be  devoted  to  secular  instruction 
exclusively,  but  one  hour  each  day  may  be  set  apart 


PUBLIC  INSTRUCTION.  167 

for  religious  instruction,  to  be  given  in  a  separate 
class-room  by  the  clergyman  or  religious  teacher 
of  any  persuasion  to  those  children  of  the  same 
denomination,  provided  the  parents  offer  no  objec- 
tion. 

Attendance  at  school  is  compulsory  for  children 
between  the  ages  of  six  and  fourteen  years,  for  at 
least  seventy  days  in  each  half  year  (unless  reason- 
able cause  for  exemption  can  be  shown)  ;  parents  are 
required  to  pay  a  weekly  fee  of  threepence  per  child, 
but  not  exceeding  one  shilling  in  all  for  the  children 
of  one  family.  The  fees,  however,  may  be  remitted 
where  it  is  shown  that  the  parents  are  unable  to  pay. 
Children  attending  schools  are  allowed  to  travel  free 
by  rail.  Arrangements  have  been  made  for  the 
establishment  of  provisional  schools,  the  appointment 
of  itinerant  teachers  in  remote  and  thinly- populated 
districts,  as  well  as  the  establishment  of  training 
schools  for  teachers.  Parents  are  not  compelled  to 
send  their  children  to  the  public  schools,  but  have 
free  choice  in  the  matter,  the  State  only  insisting  that 
instruction  shall  be  given. 

The  events  which  culminated  in  the  death  of 
General  Gordon  and  the  capture  of  Khartoum  in 
1885  were  watched  with  the  keenest  interest  by 
the  people  of  the  Australian  colonies,  and  the  wide- 
spread sympathy  which  was  felt  for  the  mother 
country,  as  the  troubles  multiplied  and  the  prospect 
became  more  threatening,  found  expression  in  the 
offer  of  Mr.  William  Bede  Dalley,  the  Attorney- 
General  and  acting  Premier  of  New  South  Wales, 
to  send  within  a  month  to  the  aid  of  the  British  arms 


l68  RESPONSIBLE   GOVERNMENT. 

in  the  Soudan  a  fully-equipped  force,  eight  hundred 
strong.  The  proposal  created  much  surprise  in 
England  and  in  Australia,  and  many  in  the  colony 
vehemently  opposed  the  idea.  But  Mr.  Dalley's 
action  won  generally  popular  approval.  After  some 
hesitation,  the  English  Government  accepted  what 
it  called  the  "  splendid  offer,"  and  for  a  time  the 
voices  of  the  malcontents  were  drowned  in  the  busy 
hum  of  preparation  for  the  despatch  of  the  contingent. 
Two  large  steamers  were  chartered  as  transports,  and 
all  arrangements  were  made,  with  a  lavish  profusion 
which  clearly  indicated  the  excitement  which  had 
taken  possession  of  the  people.  Private  citizens  vied 
with  one  another  in  making  presents  of  stores  and 
other  requisites,  and  a  patriotic  fund  started  for  the 
relief  of  the  widows  and  orphans  of  those  who  might 
fall,  soon  mounted  up  to  a  prodigious  figure.  Men 
from  all  quarters  hastened  to  volunteer  their  services, 
and  had  it  been  desired,  a  force  twice  or  three  times 
as  large  could  easily  have  been  enrolled.  Within 
three  weeks  of  the  acceptance  of  Mr.  Dalley's  offer, 
all  arrangements  had  been  completed,  and  on  the 
3rd  of  March,  amidst  the  greatest  enthusiasm,  the 
soldiers  embarked  before  a  crowd  of  close  upon  a 
quarter  of  a  million  people.  The  significance  of 
this  event  was  unquestionably  very  great.  The 
other  colonies  would  gladly  have  joined  New  South 
Wales  in  its  enterprise,  at  the  same  time  it  showed 
the  nations  of  Europe  that  Great  Britain  had  a  latent 
power  which  had  hitherto  never  been  suspected  or 
admitted  into  their  calculations.  The  whole  business 
— offer,  acceptance,  and  despatch  of  the  soldiers — was 


THE   SOUDAN  CONTINGENT.  169 

so  hurried,  and  carried  through  on  such  a  remarkable 
wave  of  popular  emotion,  that  the  calmer  heads  in 
the  community  prophesied  a  violent  reaction.  It  so 
happened  that  the  New  South  Wales  contingent  had 
but  little  opportunity  of  real  service.  Its  achieve- 
ments and  casualties  were  alike  insignificant,  and  on 
its  return  it  disembarked  under  most  unfavourable 
conditions  in  pelting  rain.  Nevertheless  the  reception 
of  the  troops  on  their  return  was  almost  as  great  as 
the  demonstration  at  their  departure.  The  prodi- 
gality displayed  in  equipping  the  force  had  provided 
scoffers  with  a  text,  whilst  the  huge  patriotic  fund  had 
but  few  claimants  upon  it  and  remained  a  monument 
of  what  appeared  to  many  in  more  sober  moments  un- 
necessary liberality.  But  none  the  less  the  majority 
of  the  colonists  were  glad  that  they  had  done  what 
they  had  ;  indeed,  were  England  on  a  future  occasion 
to  appear  in  imminent  peril,  it  is  not  at  all  improbable 
that  Australians  would  again  be  found  ready  to  aid 
her  with  their  fortunes  and  their  lives. 


XII. 


PRESENT   CONDITION   OF   THE   COLONY. 


r 


PASTORAL  industries  arc  still  the  mainstay  of 
the  country,  and  the  pastoral  inhabitants  of  the  pre- 
sent day  owe  a  heavy  debt  to  the  early  pioneers  who 
drove  their  flocks  and  herds  out  over  the  unknown 
wilds  of  Australia.  It  is  curious  to  look  back  on  the 
very  small  beginnings  of  the  enormous  pastoral 
interests  existing  now.  When  the  first  expedition 
landed  at  Sydney  Cove,  the  live  stock  which  had 
been  obtained  with  such  difficulty  at  the  Cape, 
comprised  only  one  bull,  four  cows,  one  calf,  one 
stallion,  three  mares,  three  foals,  twenty-nine  sheep, 
twelve  pigs,  and  a  few  goats ;  but  the  suitability 
of  the  country  for  pastoral  pursuits  soon  induced 
enterprising  men  like  Macarthur  and  others  to 
commence  breeding  sheep  and  cattle  and  to  start 
a  trade  in  wool.  Captain  Macarthur,  by  systema- 
tic selection,  and  the  purchase  and  importation  of 
the  best  sheep  procurable,  greatly  improved  the  strain 
of  his  flocks,  and  produced  a  fleece  of  very  fine 
texture,  which,  being  appreciated  by  English  manu- 


PASTORAL    INDUSTRIES.  IJI 

facturers,  immediately  found  a  remunerative  market. 
The  difficulties  of  transport  in  these  early  days  were 
very  great,  but  numerous  importations  were  made 
from  India  and  elsewhere.  Some  rams  and  ewes  of 
a  very  fine  breed,  which  had  been  presented  by  the 
King  of  Spain  to  the  Dutch  Government,  were  suc- 
cessfully brought  from  the  Cape,  and  some  additional 
specimens  of  the  same  strain  were  afterwards  obtained 
by  Macarthur  from  the  royal  flocks  in  England. 
When  it  had  once  been  demonstrated  that  fine  wool 
could  be  successfully  grown  in  New  South  Wales,  this 
became  the  most  important  industry  of  the  country, 
and  the  number  of  sheep  depastured  increased  very 
rapidly.  Were  it  not  for  the  losses  occasioned  by 
droughts,  the  flocks  would  perhaps  before  this  have 
reaclTetrthe  limit  which  the  pastures  could  carry,  for 
they  double  themselves  in  four  years  if  all  goes  well. 
The  loss,  however,  from  drought  and  disease  is  some- 
times very  heavy.  In  1 884,  for  instance,  it  is  estimated 
that  owing  to  the  absence  of  increase  from  lambing, 
and  the  extraordinary  mortality  among  breeding 
stock,  the  loss  through  the  adverse  season  must  have 
amounted  to  at  least  8,138,000  head.  This  figure 
shows  how  important  a  regular  rainfall  is  ;  at  the 
same  time  the  liability  of  the  Colony  to  the  disas- 
trous effects  of  dry  seasons  is  being  reduced  each 
year  by  systematic  water  conservation,  artesian 
boring  and  irrigation,  and  the  cultivation  of  drought- 
resisting  plants  and  shrubs. 

The  climate  is  so  genial,  that  there  is  no  neces- 
sity to  house  stock,  which  may  be  safely  left  in  the 
open  air,  even  during  the  winter  months  ;  but  the 


172       PRESENT   CONDITION  OF   THE   COLONY. 

old  way  of  tending  sheep,  which  was  to  place  them 
under  the  charge  of  a  shepherd,  has  been  superseded 
by  new  methods,  for  it  has  been  found  that  a  station 
can  be  more  economically  worked,  and  that  better 
fleeces  and  a  higher  percentage  of  lambs  can  be 
obtained  by  the  subdivision  of  the  runs  into  pad- 
docks. When  the  sheep  are  sheared,  the  wool  is 
packed  at  the  station  in  bales,  weighing  450  lb., 
from  4  feet  6  inches  to  5  feet  3  inches  in  length.  The 
ramifications  of  the  pastoral  interests  are  so  extensive, 
that  the  fluctuation  of  a  penny  per  lb.  in  the  value  of 
wool  in  the  consuming  markets  greatly  influences  the 
national  prosperity.  The  enormous  sum  which  a  fall  in 
price  involves  will  be  realised  better  when  it  is  stated 
that  if  the  prices  of  1884  had  ruled  in  1886,  the  growers 
of  New  South  Wales  would  have  secured  nearly 
.£2,000,000  more  than  they  actually  received  ;  and, 
although  in  1888  about  48,000,000  lb.  more  wool  was 
exported  than  five  years  previously,  the  sum  received 
was  fully  half  a  million  less.  There  is  annually  a 
large  exportable  surplus  of  sheep  for  meat,  amounting 
to  about  4,850,000  head,  but  as  yet  but  little  has  been 
done  to  utilise  it,  though  there  is  now  every  prospect 
in  the  immediate  future  of  a  large  export  of  frozen 
and  tinned  meat.  The  profitable  returns  afforded  by 
sheep-breeding  induced  many  pastoralists  to  substi- 
tute sheep  for  cattle  on  their  properties,  though  in  some 
districts  there  are  signs  of  a  change  back  to  cattle. 

The  variety  of  soil  and  climate  to  be  found  within 
New  South  Wales  is  very  great,  and  consequently 
almost  any  kind  of  crop  can  be  successfully  cultivated. 
On  the  banks  of  the  northern  rivers  sugar-cane  is 


174       PRESENT   CONDITION   OF   THE   COLONY. 

grown,  and  there  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  coffee, 
tea,  and  other  semi-tropical  products  would  do  equally 
well.  Maize  flourishes  in  the  valleys  of  the  coast 
district,  and  cereals  and  other  crops  of  cold  and  tem- 
perate climes  thrive  on  the  high  plateau  of  the  great 
dividing  range ;  but  hitherto  the  attractions  offered 
by  stock-raising  have  caused  agriculture  to  be  some- 
what neglected. 

It  is  not  improbable  that  the  next  few  years  will 
see  great  changes  in  the  system  of  land  occupation. 
So  far  all  attempts  to  induce  a  people  to  settle  on  small 
areas  have  failed.  The  results  of  even  the  most 
liberal  laws  have  been  insignificant,  and  the  flocks  of 
a  semi-nomad  pastoral  population  have  monopolised 
the  greater  part  of  the  country.  But  the  continually 
falling  values  of  meat  and  wool,  and  the  incursions  of 
rabbits,  are*  rendering  a  change  in  old  systems  im- 
perative, and  it  is  impossible  to  appreciate  the  full 
effect  of  the  change  on  the  social  organisation  when 
it  comes.  A  sparsely  populated,  but  wealth-producing 
interior,  has  hitherto  supported  an  enormous  aggrega- 
tion of  people  in  the  metropolis,  in  pursuits  which 
are  not  directly  productive  ;  when,  therefore,  stock- 
raising  as  at  present  carried  on  succumbs,  as  it  must 
inevitably  sooner  or  later,  to  the  more  advanced 
methods  of  utilising  the  soil,  the  army  of  agents 
of  all  sorts  and  descriptions  who  are  now  dependent 
on  the  pastoral  industry  will  have  to  find  new  avenues 
for  the  employment  of  their  energies. 

In  1884  a  new  Land  Act  was  passed  which,  though 
differing  widely  in  many  important  particulars  from 
previous  legislation  on  the  subject,  maintained  free 


CONDITION  OF  SETTLEMENT.  175 

selection  before  survey,  but  at  the  same  time  gave 
greater  security  of  tenure  to  the  Crown  lessees.  The 
whole  colony  was  divided  into  districts,  which  were 
placed  under  the  charge  of  local  boards  and  land 
agents,  and  a  special  tribunal  for  the  settlement  of 
disputes  in  regard  to  land  has  since  been  established. 
The  present  condition  of  settlement  may  be  briefly 
summarised  as  follows  : — 


Estates  of 

Estates  occu- 

Estates 

Estates  of 

various  classes 

pied  by  owner 

rented 

per  cent. 

per  cent. 

per  cent. 

I  to  30  acres  

°'2S 

O'K 

O'lO 

32  to  400  acres       ... 

Q  7"? 

,  *J 

7*85 

1-87 

401  to  1,000  acres 

y  /  j 
..       10-73 

i  <->/ 
1-37 

1,001  to  10,000  acres  . 

...      28-63 

24-S7 

4-07 

Upwards  of  10,000  acr 

es       50-66 

46-62 

4-04 

88-55  "'45 


The  mining  industry  still  gives  employment  to  a 
large  number  of  men,  and  a  large  variety  of  minerals 
have  been  discovered.  In  the  Barrier  Range  district, 
which  lies  to  the  west  of  the  river  Darling,  near  the 
border  of  South  Australia,  and  which  will  be  remem- 
bered as  the  neighbourhood  of  Sturt's  hardships  and 
mishaps  in  1844,  silver  deposits  extend  over  about 
2,500  square  miles.  The  deposits  worked  by  the 
celebrated  Broken  Hill  Proprietary  Company  are 
phenomenally  rich.  A  complete  smelting  plant  on 
the  latest  and  most  approved  principles  has  been 
erected,  and  the  services  of  competent  managers 
whose  experience  has  been  gained  in  the  silver  mining 
centres  of  the  United  States  have  been  obtained. 


MONUMENT  TO  CAPTAIN    COOK. 


RAILWAY  SYSTEM.  177 

From  the  commencement  of  operations  in  1885,  to 
the  3  ist  of  May,  1892,  the  Company  treated  silver  and 
silver  lead  ores,  which  yielded  36,512,445  oz.  of  silver, 
and  151,946  tons  of  lead,  valued  in  London  at 
£8,252, 1 38.  Dividends  have  been  paid  amounting  to 
£3,880,000,  bonuses  amounting  to  £592,000,  and  pro- 
perties have  been  parted  with  valued  at  £1,744,000  ; 
so  that  the  total  payments  made  to  shareholders  have 
reached  £6,216,000.  Many  mines  which  give  great 
promise  are  not  yet  fully  developed,  and  a  large 
increase  in  the  production  of  silver,  should  there  be  a 
recovery  in  price,  is  not  improbable. 

The  railway  system  of  the  country  is  divided  into 
three  main  arms,  each  being  really  a  distinct  system. 
The  southern  line,  which  is  the  most  important  of 
the  three,  branches  at  Junee,  running  from  Sydney, 
454  miles,  to  Hay,  the  principal  town  of  the  fertile 
district  of  the  Riverina  in  one  direction,  and  412  miles 
to  Jerilderie  in  another.  There  are  also  several  minor 
branches  which  drain  into  the  main  line,  while  a  line 
connecting  the  southern  and  western  systems,  from 
Murrumburrah  to  Blayney,  gives  almost  direct  com- 
munication between  Melbourne  and  Bourke.  Goul- 
burn,  a  large  town  nearer  to  Sydney,  will  also  be  the 
recipient  of  several  feeding  branches.  The  southern 
line  places  the  four  chief  capitals  of  Australia — Bris- 
bane, Sydney,  Melbourne,  and  Adelaide — in  direct 
communication  ;  and  the  mails  from  Europe  can  now 
be  landed  at  Adelaide  and  forwarded  overland  to  all 
parts  of  Victoria  and  New  South  Wales.  The  Western 
system  crosses  the  Blue  Mountains  by  zig-zag  lines, 
and  enters  the  Bathurst  Plains,  connecting  the  metro- 

13 


THE   FUTURE   OF  NEW  SOUTH    WALES.        179 

polls  with  rich  agricultural  districts,  while  a  branch 
from  Nyngan  to  Cobar  taps  a  mining  and  pastoral 
country.  There  are  also  other  short  lines  which  feed 
the  western  trunk  line.  The  Northern  system  origi- 
nally terminated  at  Newcastle,  but  the  connection  is 
now  complete  with  Sydney,  the  Hawkesbury  River 
being  spanned  by  an  iron  bridge  2,896  ft.  long.  This 
line  runs  through  the  Hunter  Valley,  to  the  rich  dis- 
trict of  New  England,  and  traverses  pastoral  and 
agricultural  country  until  it  joins  the  Queensland 
system  on  the  border  beyond  Tenterfield.  Various 
branches  are  projected  besides  the  three  systems  men- 
tioned, and  there  is  an  independent  line  to  the  Illa- 
warra  district,  a  country  rich  in  coal  and  agricultural 
produce. 

There  is  but  little  more  to  record  in  connection  with 
New  South  Wales  which  can  rightly  come  under  the 
name  of  history,  for  although  the  internal  development 
of  the  country,  and  the  growth  of  national  sentiment 
have  steadily  progressed,  there  have  been  but  few 
events  to  mark  an  epoch  during  the  last  twenty  years. 
The  aspirations  and  difficulties  which  used  to  affect  the 
provinces  individually  are  rapidly  losing  their  purely 
provincial  significance,  and  the  interests  of  each  colony 
are  so  inextricably  interwoven  with  those  of  its  sisters, 
that  great  questions  must  in  future  be  decided  more 
and  more  in  accordance  with  the  interests  of  the 
commonwealth  as  opposed  to  the  inclination  of  a 
particular  member  of  the  group. 


TASMANIA. 
XIII. 


THE  SETTLEMENT  AT  THE  DERWENT. 
(1803-1837.) 

RUMOURS  that  the  French  intended  to  form 
colonies  in  the  South  Pacific  again  gained  credence 
in  1803,  and  the  Governor  of  New  South  Wales 
promptly  took  steps  to  prevent,  if  possible,  the 
landing  of  foreigners  on  Australian  territory.  With 
this  end  in  view  Lieutenant  John  Bowen  was  de- 
spatched to  Van  Diemen's  Land  with  "  sealed  orders 
not  to  be  opened  except  on  the  appearance  of  French 
vessels,"  and  with  him  were  sent  some  soldiers  and 
convicts,  to  form  a  settlement  on  the  banks  of  the 
Derwent.  A  whaler  named  the  Albion  and  the 
Lady  Nelson  acted  as  transports ;  after  a  tem- 
pestuous voyage  Bowen,  in  the  former,  cast  anchor 
off  Risdon,  in  the  Derwent,  on  the  I2th  of  Sep- 
tember, the  Lady  Nelson  having  reached  her  des- 
tination a  few  days  previously.  The  new  settlement 
was  named  Hobart  after  Lord  Hobart,  the  then 
Secretary  of  State  for  the  Colonies,  and  Bowen 

i  So 


l82          THE   SETTLEMENT  AT   THE   DERWENT. 

expressed  himself  as  delighted  with  the  site  selected 
for  the  town  and  the  country  generally.  In  the  same 
year  Van  Diemen's  Land  was  inspected  by  Mr. 
Collins,  who  had  been  despatched  by  Lieutenant- 
Governor  Collins  to  seek  a  spot  to  which  the  settle- 
ment at  Port  Phillip  might  be  advantageously 
removed.  The  Tamar  was  first  visited,  but  did  not 
favourably  impress  the  explorers,  and  the  Lieutenant- 
Governor,  having  obtained  King's  permission,  decided 
to  transfer  his  colony  to  the  Derwent.  He  would 
appear  to  have  been  difficult  to  please,  for  on  arrival 
in  the  river  he  was  not  satisfied  with  Bowen's  choice, 
but  landed  and  pitched  his  camp  on  the  southern 
side  of  the  Derwent  at  Sullivan's  Cove.  Bowen,  who 
was  subordinate  to  the  Governor  of  New  South 
Wales,  though  he  had  been  instructed  to  hand  over 
his  command  to  Collins  on  that  officer's  arrival,  for 
some  time  was  unable  to  obey  ;  for  Collins  was 
unwilling  to  undertake  fresh  duties  incurring  in- 
creased work  ;  the  cares  of  the  settlement  were 
numerous,  food  was  scarce,  and  both  soldiery  and 
convicts  made  frequent  attempts  to  rob  the  public 
stores.  At  last  King  was  compelled  to  peremptorily 
command  Bowen  to  return  to  New  South  Wales,  as 
it  was  impossible  longer  to  tolerate  the  absurdity  of 
two  distinct  governments  within  eight  miles  of  each 
other,  and  Collins  perforce  took  charge  of  the  com- 
bined settlements.  Although  Port  Dalrymple  had 
been  rejected  by  Collins,  it  appeared  expedient  to 
form  a  colony  in  that  part  of  the  island,  and  in  1804 
Colonel  Paterson,  acting  under  instructions  from 
King,  landed  at  George  Town  on  the  Tamar ;  but 


TASMANIAN   NATIVE. 


184         THE   SETTLEMENT  AT   THE   DERWENT. 

a  better  site  for  a  town  being  discovered  at  York 
Town,  the  camp  was  moved  to  that  place.  The  de- 
tachments were  quite  independent  of  each  other, 
and  Paterson  was  careful  to  get  his  jurisdiction 
defined  before  leaving  New  South  Wales,  the  line  of 
demarcation  between  the  two  commands  being  deter- 
mined at  the  forty-second  parallel  of  latitude. 

Society  in  the  island  settlements  was  very  much  like 
society  in  Sydney,  only  on  a  smaller  scale.  The 
population  consisted  almost  entirely  of  convicts  and 
their  guards,  and  the  assignment  system,  by  which  the 
few  free  settlers  who  there  were  benefited  by  bond 
labour,  was  almost  at  once  introduced.  These  new 
colonies  were,  however,  better  off  in  some  respects 
than  Sydney  had  been  at  its  foundation  ;  for  King,  who 
had  had  every  opportunity  of  seeing  the  difficulties 
surrounding  the  foundation  of  new  settlements,  and 
had  suffered  a  bitter  experience  of  the  results  of 
neglect  and  want  of  foresight,  kept  a  watchful  eye  on 
the  affairs  of  the  young  communities.  Cattle  were 
brought  in  considerable  numbers  from  India  and 
Ceylon,  and  all  that  could  be  done  to  render  the 
settlements  in  Van  Diemen's  Land  self-supporting 
was  at  once  undertaken.  Unfortunately  the  same 
miserable  misunderstanding  with  the  natives  which 
so  stains  the  early  records  of  the  continent  led  to 
bloodshed  in  Van  Diemen's  Land.  On  Bowen's 
first  arrival  he  had  been  anxious  to  avoid  any  col- 
lision, and  had  taken  no  steps  to  open  up  commu- 
nication with  the  aboriginal  inhabitants.  The  black 
fellows,  for  their  part,  appeared  to  bear  the  intruders 
no  ill-will,  and,  indeed,  when  intercourse  had  been 


MISUNDERSTANDING    WITH   THE   NATIVES.      185 

established,  as  was  inevitable  sooner  or  later,  they 
were  on  all  occasions  friendly  and  harmless.  In 
March,  1804,  a  notice  appeared  in  the  Sydney  Gazette 
in  which  it  was  stated  that  the  natives  about  the 
Derwent  were  "very  friendly  to  small  parties  they 
meet  accidentally,  though  they  cannot  be  prevailed 
upon  to  visit  the  camp  ;  "  but  two  months  later  this 
happy  state  of  peace  was  rudely  broken.  Bowen 
was  still  in  command  of  the  settlement,  but  during 
his  temporary  absence,  when  Lieutenant  Moore  was 
acting  for  him,  the  first  unfortunate  affray  occurred. 
A  large  body  of  natives,  with  women  and  children, 
appeared  close  to  the  camp  (as  was  afterwards  dis- 
covered) on  a  kangaroo  hunt ;  and  Moore,  antici- 
pating an  attack,  and  being  ignorant  of  their 
customs,  assumed  that  their  intentions  were  hostile. 
The  soldiers  were  called  out,  and  the  order  given  to 
open  fire,  and  some  fifty  blacks,  men,  women,  and 
children,  fell  victims  to  the  fear  and  stupidity  of  the 
officer  in  command.  From  this  moment  hopeless, 
relentless  war  commenced.  Confidence  was  destroyed, 
and  the  native  races  disappeared  with  incredible 
rapidity  before  the  lust  and  cruelty  of  the  white  man. 
Soon  after  the  massacre  at  Risdon,  Patterson  on  the 
other  side  of  the  island  had  also  to  use  firearms,  and 
the  next  few  years  of  Tasmanian  history  are  over- 
shadowed by  deeds  of  unexampled  brutality.  In  1805 
an  addition  was  made  to  the  inhabitants  by  the  arrival 
of  some  of  the  settlers  from  Norfolk  Island,  who  had 
been  offered  land  at  either  Risdon  or  Port  Dalrymple, 
instead  of  their  former  holdings,  when  it  had  been 
determined  to  evacuate  the  island  prison, 


l86         THE   SETTLEMENT  AT    THE   DERWENT. 

The  time  selected  for  the  transfer  was  unfortunate, 
for  the  four  following  years  were  most  disastrous.  The 
Van  Diemen's  Land  settlements  suffered  terribly 
from  the  period  of  famine  which  afflicted  all  the 
Australian  colonies  on  account  of  the  destruction  of 
crops  in  New  South  Wales  by  floods,  and  the  failure 
of  harvests  in  the  year  following.  Matters  got  worse 
and  worse,  until  kangaroo  meat  was  the  only  animal 
food  obtainable.  Seed  wheat  rose  to  £3  and  £4. 
per  bushel,  and  at  length  the  public  stores  being 
exhausted,  the  prisoners  were  turned  out  into  the 
woods  to  seek  for  food  in  any  shape  in  which  it 
could  be  found.  In  1810  the  strain  was  somewhat 
relieved  by  the  arrival  of  breadstuffs  from  India,  and 
with  the  return  of  fair  seasons  and  an  increase  in 
cultivation  the  prospects  of  the  colony  improved. 
Governor  Collins  died  suddenly  at  Hobart  in  March, 
1810,  and  pending  the  appointment  of  a  new  governor, 
Lieutenant  Lord,  Captain  Murray,  and  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  Giels,  all  in  turn  administered  the  govern- 
ment. Macquarie  crossed  the  Straits  during  the 
interregnum,  and  indulged  his  craze  for  naming  or 
re-naming  places.  He  was  well  received  by  the 
inhabitants,  and  after  a  short  but  pleasant  visit 
returned  to  New  South  Wales,  In  1811  Colonel 
Davey  was  appointed  lieutenant-governor,  in  suc- 
cession to  Collins,  and  the  two  settlements  of 
Hobart  and  York  Town  were  brought  under  one 
control. 

The  arrangements  for  the  administration  of  justice 
in  Van  Diemen's  Land  had  hitherto  been  remarkable, 
for  absolutely  no  Court  had  been  established,  and 


ADMINISTRATION   OF  JUSTICE.  187 

the  most  trivial  offences  could  only  be  dealt  with 
legally  by  reference  to  Sydney.  Collins  had  brought 
out  a  judge-advocate  with  him  to  Port  Phillip,  but 
this  gentleman's  commission  was  not  regarded  as 
valid  for  Van  Diemen's  Land.  He  therefore  declined 
to  do  any  work,  and  contented  himself  with  confining 
his  labours  to  drawing  his  salary  regularly  for  ten 
years.  That  a  community  of  about  three  thousand 
persons  should  so  long  have  put  up  with  a  judge  who 
may  have  been  ornamental  but  was  certainly  absolutely 
useless,  is  a  remarkable  fact;  but  in  1814  the  incon- 
venience of  having  to  go  to  Sydney  to  settle  any 
trivial  civil  dispute  became  too  great,  and  a  "  Lieu- 
tenant-Governor's Court"  was  established  at  Hobart 
Town  with  a  jurisdiction  extending  to  personal 
matters  under  the  value  of  £50.  Any  dispute  of 
greater  importance,  and  all  criminal  trials,  were  still 
to  be  dealt  with  in  Sydney  ;  but  the  concession,  so 
far  as  civil  actions  were  concerned,  was  complete,  for 
the  disputants  evaded  the  limit  by  dividing  all  their 
claims  into  amounts  which  the  local  court  would 
be  competent  to  try.  After  the  arduous  labours 
of  Bates,  the  Judge- Advocate  already  mentioned,  it 
would  have  been  unfair  to  require  him  to  undertake 
the  new  work  which  the  establishment  of  this  court 
created,  so  Macquarie  appointed  Captain  Abbot  to  act 
as  deputy  Judge-Advocate,  and  this  officer,  although 
ignorant  of  law,  seems  to  have  given  litigants  fair 
satisfaction. 

During  Davey's  administration  of  the  government 
much  solid  progress  was  made  in  industrial  develop- 
ment. Wheat  was  exported  to  Sydney  in  1816,  and 


188         THE   SETTLEMENT  AT   THE   DERWENT. 

the  inducements  held  out  to  immigrants,  in  the  shape 
of  extensive  free  grants  of  land,  produced  a  con- 
siderable influx  of  excellent  colonists,  many  being 
possessed  of  the  capital  which  was  so  much  required. 
The  finest  portions  of  the  arable  land  were  about 
this  time  alienated,  and  settlement  would  probably 
have  been  even  more  satisfactory  had  not  the  country 
been  overrun  by  bushrangers,  who  plundered  and 
terrified  the  farmers.  The  civil  and  military  authori- 
ties were  incapable  of  dealing  with  the  outlawed 
robbers,  who  found  safe  retreat  in  the  mountain 
fastnesses,  and  at  last  things  assumed  such  a  serious 
aspect  that  Davey  proclaimed  martial  law.  Abbot, 
the  Judge-Advocate,  protested  that  such  a  step  was 
illegal,  and  Macquarie,  who  would  have  been  obliged 
in  any  case  to  ratify  the  proclamation,  refused  abso- 
lutely to  sanction  so  extreme  a  course,  and  made 
representations  to  the  English  Government  which 
resulted  in  the  recall  of  the  Lieutenant-Governor. 
In  1815  the  knowledge  of  the  island  had  been 
materially  increased  by  the  explorations  of  Captain 
James  Kelly,  who  discovered  Port  Davey  and 
Macquarie  Harbour,  and  traversed  a  large  portion 
of  the  south,  west,  and  north  coast.  A  rather 
amusing  incident  is  connected  with  Kelly's  explo- 
rations. When,  after  weeks  of  rough  travelling,  the 
little  band  of  pioneers  reached  the  settlement  at 
York  Town,  the  inhabitants,  frightened  by  the  wild 
and  ragged  appearance  of  the  men,  turned  out  in 
force  to  repel  an  attack  from  what  they  supposed  to 
be  a  party  of  bushrangers  ;  and  it  was  only  after 
mutual  explanations  that  the  weary  travellers  were 


HISTORY  OF  MICHAEL   HOWE.  189 

permitted  to  enter  the  town  and  obtain  the  refresh- 
ment and  rest  which  they  so  much  needed. 

Colonel  William  Sorrel  was  appointed  Davey's 
successor,  and  immediately  on  his  arrival  set  to  work 
to  check  the  growing  terrors  of  bushranging.  Re- 
wards were  offered  for  the  capture  of  bushrangers, 
and  by  this  means  many  convicts  and  soldiers,  the 
first  inspired  by  a  hope  of  obtaining  their  liberty, 
the  latter  by  the  prospect  of  more  material  gain, 
were  induced  to  hunt  down  the  robbers.  Some  of 
the  stories  concerning  the  capture  of  the  leaders  are 
of  thrilling  interest,  and  the  daring  and  coolness  dis- 
played by  both  pursuers  and  pursued  make  the 
records  of  this  period  read  more  like  sensational 
novels  than  sober  official  documents.  The  history 
of  Michael  Howe  is,  perhaps,  the  most  dramatic. 
Howe,  a  sailor  by  profession,  was  convicted  of  high- 
way robbery  in  1812,  and  transported  to  Hobart 
Town,  where  the  old  instinct  soon  asserted  itself  and 
drove  him  to  the  bush.  He  took  a  leading  part 
in  the  boldest  raids  on  settlers,  but  escaped  all  his 
would-be  captors  by  the  aid  of  an  aboriginal  girl, 
who  guided  him  to  hiding-places  almost  inaccessible 
to  white  men.  A  price  was  put  upon  his  head,  and  a 
party  of  settlers  were  eager  in  pursuit ;  but  when  the 
bushrangers  comprising  his  band  were  at  length  over- 
taken, the  colonists  were  defeated  and  five  of  their 
number  killed.  This  was  not,  however,  sufficient 
retaliation  for  Howe's  party,  who  made  an  attack  on 
the  homestead  of  the  leader  of  the  settlers,  in  the 
hope  of  wreaking  vengeance  ;  the  house  in  the  mean- 
time had  been  filled  with  soldiers,  and  the  robbers 


HEAD   OF   TASMANIAN   NATIVE, 


PURSUIT  OF  HOWE.  191 

met  with  a  warmer  reception  than  they  had  antici- 
pated. Many  of  the  bushrangers  were  killed,  and 
amongst  them  Whitehead,  one  of  the  leaders  of  the 
band.  Howe  thereupon  severed  the  head  from  the 
trunk  of  Whitehead,  and,  bearing  it  with  him,  suc- 
cessfully fled  from  the  arm  of  the  law.  He  again 
formed  his  band,  and,  styling  himself  the  "  Governor 
of  the  Ranges,"  continued  to  commit  crimes  even 
more  atrocious  than  before. 

But  the  notoriety  gained  by  Howe  caused  his 
capture  to  be  regarded  as  of  the  utmost  importance, 
the  reward  offered  being  exceptionally  high.  Worral, 
a  convict  who  longed  for  his  liberty,  pressed  him  hard. 
Flying  for  life  through  the  rocky  mountains,  the 
black  girl,  worn  and  sick,  lagged  behind,  and  Howe, 
moved  by  no  feelings  of  affection  or  pity  for  the 
woman  who  had  followed  him  so  faithfully,  turned 
and  shot  her,  in  the  hope  of  preventing  all  possibility 
of  betrayal,  should  she  be  taken  by  his  enemies.  In 
his  .haste  his  pistol  was  ill  aimed,  and  the  woman  was 
wounded  but  not  killed,  and  henceforth  one  more  was 
added  to  Howe's  pursuers — one  who  was  the  most 
formidable  of  them  all,  for  her  motive  was  revenge, 
not  gain,  and  all  his  hiding-places  and  habits  were 
known  to  her.  Once  Howe  was  captured  and  bound, 
but  he  slipped  his  bonds  and  slew  his  two  captors. 
At  last  Worral  and  a  soldier  named  Pugh  tried 
artifice,  and,  concealing  themselves  in  a  hut,  they 
persuaded  a  former  friend  of  Howe's  to  entice  him 
into  it.  His  enemies  sprang  out  upon  him,  and  a 
desperate  fight  began.  Howe  beat  off  his  assailants 
and  turned  to  fly.  But  if  they  could  not  take  him 


IQ2          THE   SETTLEMENT  AT    THE   DERWENT. 

alive,  they  were  at  any  rate  determined  that  no  one 
else  should  ;  clubbing  their  muskets,  they  dashed 
out  the  bushranger's  brains.  This  story  will  give 
some  idea  of  the  wild  life  led  by  many  of  the  colo- 
nists, who  slept  with  loaded  firearms  by  their  pillows, 
ready  at  any  moment  to  repulse  an  attack  by  robbers 
who  were  already  so  steeped  in  crime  that  the  taking 
of  a  life  more  or  less  could  add  nothing  to  the  penalty 
already  earned. 

The  war  waged  against  the  bushrangers  was  at 
length  successful,  and  confidence  was  restored 
amongst  the  fanners.  Some  pure  Merino  sheep 
from  Macarthur's  Camden  flock  were  imported,  and 
both  stock-breeding  and  agriculture  were  energeti- 
cally pushed  forward.  Reform  was  also  effected  at 
this  time  in  the  management  of  convicts.  Musters 
were  instituted,  and  stringent  regulations  governing 
the  movements  of  assigned  servants  promulgated, 
while  a  penal  settlement  was  formed  at  Macquarie 
Harbour,  in  which  the  worst  of  the  prisoners  were 
closely  guarded.  Sorrel  by  these  means  afforded  no 
opportunity  to  the  prisoners  of  absconding  into  the 
bush  without  their  flight  being  at  once  discovered. 
In  1822  the  first  church,  St.  David's,  was  completed, 
but  no  schools  were  as  yet  in  existence,  and  the 
standard  of  morality  was  exceedingly  low.  In 
Hobart  there  was  a  population  of  over  1000,  but  the 
town  was  little  more  than  a  collection  of  mean-look- 
ing wooden  huts.  Trade  had  nevertheless  greatly 
increased,  and  the  colony  showed  promise  of  better 
things.  Sorrel  left  Australia  in  1824,  and  was  suc- 
ceeded by  Colonel  George  Arthur.  Shortly  after  Van 


THE   PRESS.  193 

Diemen's  Land  was  proclaimed  an  independent 
colony,  and  Local  Legislative  and  Executive  Councils 
were  appointed.  The  first  consisted  of  seven  mem- 
bers, all  nominated  by  the  Crown,  and  the  second  of 
four  nominees,  mostly  officials.  One  of  the  first  acts 
of  the  new  legislature  was  to  pass  a  law  to  regulate 
the  currency,  which  had  become  bevvilderingly  con- 
fused, paper,  more  or  less  worthless,  and  foreign  coin, 
being  the  common  circulating  mediums.  The  anoma- 
lous condition  of  the  administration  of  justice  had  in 
the  year  before  been  remedied,  and  a  judge  had  been 
sent  out  from  England  bearing  a  charter  establishing 
a  Supreme  Court  of  Van  Diemen's  Land.  The  Acts 
with  regard  to  juries  which  were  in  force  in  New 
South  Wales  applied  to  the  island,  but  Pidder,  the 
new  judge,  read  the  law  differently  from  Forbes,  and 
rigorously  excluded  the  emancipated  class  from  the 
jury-box.  During  the  previous  ten  years  the  social 
conditions  of  the  community  had  greatly  changed, 
and  the  evidences  of  the  presence  of  a  free  population 
began  to  force  themselves  upon  the  Government. 
The  most  important  of  these  was  in  regard  to  the 
press.  After  many  unsuccessful  attempts,  a  paper 
called  the  Hobart  Town  Gazette  had  been  established 
in  1816,  under  official  patronage,  and  subject  to  the 
Governor's  control ;  this  periodical  still  lived  when 
Governor  Arthur  took  up  the  reins  of  government. 
But  Bent,  the  editor,  longed  to  be  free  from  restraining 
influences,  and  soon  fell  out  with  the  imperious 
Arthur.  The  result  could  be  only  one  way.  Arthur 
triumphed,  and  the  Hobart  Town  Gazette  and  Van 
Diemen's  Land  Advertiser  ceased  to  appear  for  a 


TASMANIAN   NATIVE. 
(Coal  River  Tribe.) 


NEWSPAPER  ACT.  195 

time,  and  a  Government  publication,  under  the  first 
half  of  the  old  title,  took  its  place.  In  the  following 
year  Arthur  took  steps  to  suppress  the  liberty  of  the 
press,  and  succeeded  in  passing  an  Act  imposing  a 
license  fee  and  a  stamp  tax  of  threepence  per  copy 
on  all  newspapers.  A  penalty  of  ;£ioo  was  incurred 
by  any  one  publishing  a  paper  without  first  having 
obtained  a  license,  and  (as  was  apparently  intended) 
Bent  soon  fell  a  victim  to  the  new  measure,  and 
posed  as  a  martyr  in  gaol.  But  Arthur  had  gone  too 
far,  and  his  action  gave  life  to  a  movement  in  favour 
of  popular  institutions.  The  King  and  Commons 
were  petitioned  for  trial  by  jury  on  a  more  extended 
scale,  as  well  as  for  government  by  representation  ; 
an  agitation  at  once  commenced,  which  steadily  in- 
creased till  the  boons  craved  were  granted.  General 
dissatisfaction  was  expressed  at  the  harshness  of 
Arthur's  press  law,  and  the  prohibitory  character  of 
the  stamp  duty,  and  so  strong  was  popular  feeling 
that  the  Act  was  amended  in  the  direction  indicated. 
But  although  Arthur  was  scarcely  prudent  in  some 
of  his  measures,  he  did  much  to  improve  the  internal 
organisation  of  the  colony.  Under  his  direction  the 
whole  island  was  divided  into  police  districts,  each 
under  a  stipendiary  magistrate,  and  no  convict  was 
permitted  to  travel  from  one  district  to  another  with- 
out having  first  obtained  a  permit  from  the  magis- 
trate in  charge.  The  commercial  and  financial  affairs 
of  the  country  also  received  attention,  and  Arthur 
recognised  that  the  usury  laws  of  England  were  very 
inappropriate  to  the  very  different  circumstances  of 
.Van  Diemen's  Land.  The  question  was  a  serious 


196         THE   SETTLEMENT  AT   THE  DERIVE  NT. 

one ;  for,  had  the  usury  laws  applied,  99  per  cent,  of 
the  transactions  of. the  ordinary  commercial  life  of  the 
community  would  have  been  legally  punishable  with 
severe  penalties.  Arthur  took  the  bull  by  the  horns, 
and  boldly  declared  the  usury  law  not  to  apply. 
The  country  was  rapidly  becoming  more  settled. 
Mr.  Henry  Hellyer  in  1827  traversed  the  banks  of  the 
Arthur  and  Hellyer  rivers,  and  named  the  Surrey  and 
the  Hampshire  hills.  The  fertility  of  the  soil,  and 
suitability  of  the  colony  for  agricultural  and  pastoral 
cntcrpise  on  a  large  scale,  attracted  the  attention  of 
English  capitalists.  In  1825  two  large  companies 
were  formed  with  the  object  mainly  of  sheep  farming. 
The  Van  Diemen's  Land  Company  obtained  by 
charter  a  block  of  250,000  acres  in  the  north-west 
portion  of  the  island,  and  shortly  after  another 
100,000  acres  near  Emu  Bay  and  Circular  Head,  and 
commenced  operations  in  1828.  The  Van  Diemen's 
Land  Establishment  received  a  smaller  grant  of 
40,000  acres  in  the  Norfolk  Plains  District,  and  both 
companies  set  to  work  energetically  to  import  stock 
and  improve  the  breed.  Although  bushranging  had 
been  considerably  diminished,  there  were  still  at  large 
many  reckless  and  daring  robbers.  In  two  years 
there  were  no  less  than  103  executions,  and  in  the 
sparsely  inhabited  districts  crime  was  very  prevalent. 
The  convicts  were  ever  on  the  alert  for  opportunities 
of  escape,  and  in  a  few  instances  met  with  success. 
The  most  remarkable  case  is  perhaps  that  of  some 
prisoners  who,  while  being  conveyed  to  Macquarie 
Harbour — the  destination  of  the  most  incorrigible 
offenders — seized  the  Cypress  and  sailed  away  to 


THE   NATIVE   QUESTION,  197 

China  and  Japan.  On  arrival  near  port  they 
abandoned  their  ship,  and  landed  in  an  open  boat, 
representing  themselves  to  be  shipwrecked  seamen  ; 
and,  their  story  being  believed,  they  were  liberally 
assisted  with  money  to  enable  them  to  reach  London. 
On  their  arrival  in  England,  however,  their  identity 
was  discovered,  and  some  were  hanged,  while  others 
were  sent  back  to  servitude  in  Van  Diemen's  Land. 

But  the  convict  and  bushranging  difficulties  had 
sunk  into  insignificance  compared  with  the  all- 
absorbing  question  of  the  natives.  The  aboriginals 
had  become  more  used  to  the  manners  and  customs 
of  the  white  population,  and  had  profited  by  their 
intercourse.  They  now  waged  war  in  a  far  more 
scientific  way,  and  their  depredations  were  more 
frequent  and  extensive.  When  attacking  a  home- 
stead they  usually  adopted  the  following  tactics  : — 
First,  a  feigned  attack  was  made  to  induce  the  settlers 
to  fire  their  guns,  and  then,  before  their  arms  could 
be  reloaded,  the  black  men  rushed  upon  their  victims 
and  pierced  them  with  their  spears.  There  was  no 
room  for  doubt  that  the  cause  of  the  hostility  of 
the  natives  was  to  be  found  in  the  brutal  treatment 
they  had  received  at  the  hands  of  escaped  convicts, 
and  stockkeepers  on  distant  runs.  Governor  Davey 
declared  that  "he  could  not  have  believed  that  British 
subjects  would  have  so  ignominiously  stained  the 
honour  of  their  country  and  themselves,  as  to  have 
acted  in  the  manner  they  did  towards  the  aborigines." 
Before  a  commission  appointed  by  Arthur  in  1830, 
blood-curdling  stories  of  cruelty  were  freely  told. 
One  man  had  been  punished  for  cutting  off  the. 


198         THE   SETTLEMENT  AT   THE   DERWENT. 

finger  of  a  native,  because  he  wanted  it  for  a  tobacco 
stopper ;  while  another  had  murdered  the  husband  of 
a  black  woman  he  coveted,  and  had  compelled  the 
woman  to  follow  him  with  the  bleeding  trophy  of 
the  man's  head  hung  about  her  neck.  Could  it  be 
wondered  at  that  the  natives  regarded  a  race  who 
produced  such  inhuman  brutes  as  these  as  a  fitting 
object  for  just  vengeance  ?  Governor  after  governor 
had  enjoined  peace  and  harmony  between  the  two 
people  ;  but  the  proclamations  were  not  worth  the 
paper  they  were  written  on,  for  the  blacks  could  not 
read  them,  and  the  whites  totally  disregarded  them. 
Sorrel  reminded  his  subjects,  in  1819,  that  in  places, 
far  from  settlement,  the  natives  were  unsuspicious 
and  peaceable,  manifesting  no  disposition  to  injure  ; 
they  were  known  moreover  to  be  equally  inoffensive 
in  places  where  stockkeepers  treated  them  with 
mildness  and  forbearance. 

The  prosperity  of  the  European  population  was, 
however,  regarded  naturally  as  of  overwhelming 
importance,  and  all  considerations  of  humanity 
had  to  succumb  to  measures  of  expediency.  The 
day  for  conciliation  had  gone  by,  and  Arthur's 
efforts  to  appease  the  blacks  by  allotting  them  special 
districts  were  unheeded.  The  idea  had  been  to 
capture  all  natives  found  outside  the  limits  of  these 
districts,  and  replace  them  within  the  boundaries, 
but  the  capture  parties  organised  for  this  service,  with 
but  few  exceptions,  murdered  many  more  than  they 
took,  and  the  extreme  rapidity  with  which  the  natives 
travelled  enabled  them  to  avoid  their  pursuers,  and 
strike  terror  into  the  breasts  of  the  settlers  in  lonely 


GEORGE   AUGUSTUS  ROBINSON.  199 

places.  This  dark  page  of  Tasmanian  history  is 
relieved  by  one  bright  spot.  A  bricklayer  named 
George  Augustus  Robinson,  who  was  filled  with 
religious  zeal,  offered  to  go  unarmed  among  the 
natives,  and  endeavour  to  affect  by  peaceful  means 
what  the  Government  had  failed  to  do  by  force. 
Robinson  received  some  slight  assistance  from  the 
authorities,  but  his  efforts  were  useless  while  all 
round  him  the  work  of  treachery  and  carnage  was 
continued  by  the  capture  parties.  At  last  Arthur  in 
despair  at  the  non-success  of  his  more  humane  in- 
tentions with  regard  to  his  native  reserves,  determined 
to  make  one  supreme  effort  to  settle  the  question 
once  for  all.  A  huge  body  of  settlers,  soldiers,  and 
convicts  was  organised  to  drive  the  natives  into 
Tasman's  Peninsula,  the  narrow  neck  of  which  was 
to  be  carefully  guarded  as  soon  as  all  the  blacks  had 
crossed.  Twenty-six  depots  for  provisions  were 
formed,  and  eight  hundred  soldiers,  as  many  convicts, 
and  about  four  hundred  free  settlers  were  enrolled 
as  beaters.  What  is  known  as  the  Black  Line  was 
formed,  and  an  advance  steadily  made  across  the 
island.  Gradually  the  line  of  beaters  contracted,  but 
when  the  journey  was  finished  the  natives  were 
behind  and  not  in  front.  By  some  means  they  had 
eluded  the  vigilance  of  the  white  men,  and  ,£30,000 
had  been  expended  with  no  result  whatever.  All 
that  there  was  to  be  shown  for  the  money  was  one 
male  native  and  one  boy,  who  had  been  captured  on 
the  march.  This  failure  was  perhaps  fortunate;  for 
Robinson  was  now  given  a  fair  field  in  which  to  try 
his  scheme.  In  less  than  five  years  he  successfully 


200         THE   SETTLEMENT  AT   THE  DERWENT. 

accomplished  his  mission,  and  the  small  remnant  of 
the  native  race  were  gathered  by  him  into  one  place 
by  means  of  mutual  confidence  and  his  friendly 
persuasion.  There  were  only  two  hundred  and  three 
survivors,  all  told,  and  they  were  removed  to  Flinders 
Island.  Here  Robinson  did  all  in  his  power  for  their 
comfort,  but  "they  died  in  the  sulks  like  so  .many 
bears,"  the  heartbroken  relics  of  a  people  who  might 
under  better  treatment  have  been  capable  of  a  high 
degree  of  civilisation. 

While  these  events  were  occurring  considerable 
progress  was  made  in  other  directions.  A  great 
meeting  was  held  in  1831  to  demand  responsible 
government,  but,  like  most  movements  of  this 
character,  the  object  aimed  at  was  retarded  by  the 
want  of  reason  and  moderation  displaced  by  its 
advocates  at  its  inception.  Free  institutions  in  a 
bond  colony  such  as  Van  Diemen's  Land  was  at 
this  time  would  have  been  grotesque.  A  commission 
was  appointed  to  inquire  into  the  titles  of  persons  to 
landed  property,  and  the  boundaries  of  estates  were 
properly  surveyed  and  defined.  A  further  concession 
was,  moreover,  made  in  connection  with  trial  by  jury ; 
and,  by  an  enactment  of  the  local  legislature,  juries 
were  permitted  in  civil  actions  on  the  application  of 
either  party  to  the  suit.  Education  and  religion 
advanced  rapidly  in  the  later  years  of  Arthur's 
Government,  and  the  population  improved  morally 
and  socially. 


XIV. 

EVENTS   PRECEDING  CONSTITUTIONAL 
GOVERNMENT. 

(1837-1851). 

THE  labour  of  convicts  being  used  for  public  pur- 
poses, the  construction  of  roads  and  bridges  through- 
out the  country  was  energetically  proceeded  with, 
and  by  these  means  internal  communication  became 
more  regular  and  frequent.  Ten  years  previously  a 
foot  post  carried  the  mails  once  a  fortnight  between 
Hobart  and  Launceston,  but  now  a  mail  cart  ran 
twice  a  week,  covering  the  distance,  one  hundred  and 
twenty-one  miles  in  about  nineteen  hours.  Arthur 
left  the  colony  at  the  end  of  October,  1836,  and 
although  his  imperious  nature  and  untiring  energy 
made  many  enemies,  he  achieved  much  for  the  com- 
munity under  his  charge,  and  was  generally  regretted 
at  his  departure.  The  duties  of  acting  Governor 
were  performed  by  Lieut-Colonel  Snodgrass  for  a 
couple  of  months,  pending  the  arrival  of  Sir  John 
Franklin,  in  January  of  the  following  year.  But 
Snodgrass  unwittingly  sowed  the  seeds  of  dissension, 
and  Franklin  on  his  arrival  found  himself  placed  in 


202   PRECEDING   CONSTITUTIONAL   GOVERNMENT. 

a  position  from  which  he  could  not  possibly  extricate 
himself  without  giving  offence  to  a  large  section  of 
his  subjects.  It  so  happened  that  Snodgrass  had 
been  persuaded  to  convene  a  synod  of  Presbyterians 
to  deal  with  a  matter  affecting  the  Scottish  Church, 
but  the  recognition  of  any  other  religious  denomina- 
tion gave  umbrage  to  the  Church  of  England,  which 
claimed  to  be  the  only  body  which  should  be  ac- 
knowledged by  the  State.  On  the  other  hand,  there 
was  a  prospect,  should  it  be  conceded  that  the 
Presbyterians  were  under  Government  direction,  that 
other  dissenting  bodies  might  claim  similar  tutilage. 
Franklin  fully  appreciated  the  difficulty,  and  at  once 
dissolved  the  Presbyterian  Synod,  but  in  order  that 
this  action  might  not  be  misconstrued,  he  adopted 
Bourke's  measures  for  granting  State  aid  to  all 
denominations,  which  by  their  own  exertions  might 
place  themselves  in  a  position  to  claim  it.  Franklin's 
act  was  too  liberal,  and  had  eventually  to  be  amended 
on  account  of  the  frauds  committed  in  the  name  of 
religion ;  but  the  principle  of  tolerance  contained 
in  the  measure  has  ever  since  been  accepted  through- 
out Australasia. 

It  would  have  been  difficult  to  have  found  two  men 
more  unlike  than  Franklin  and  his  predecessor. 
Arthur  was  essentially  strong  and  relentless.  He 
had  no  pity  for  crime  or  the  criminal,  and  justice 
under  his  direction  took  an  even,  if  undiscriminating, 
course.  Franklin,  on  the  other  hand,  was  filled  to 
overflowing  with  philanthropy.  With  him  to  err  was 
but  human,  an  opportunity  for  Divine  forgiveness., 
The  result  can  easily  be  imagined.  All  the  officers 


SIR   JOHN  FRANKLIN.  203 

of  the  Government  establishments  had  been  trained 
to  Arthur's  methods,  and  failed  to  discover  in 
Franklin's  apparent  weakness,  the  saving  leaven  of 
humanity.  From  the  Colonial  Secretary  downwards 
they  fought  tooth  and  nail  against  the  new  order  of 
things,  and  early  in  the  day  Franklin  was  compelled 
to  get  rid  of  his  private  secretary,  Maconochie,  whose 
theories  on  criminal  treatment  were  a  burlesque  of 
Franklin's  methods. 

But  if  for  various  reasons  his  reign  was  not  an 
administrative  success,  Franklin  nevertheless  left  an 
indelible  mark  on  the  social  life  of  the  island.  An 
extraordinary  impetus  was  given  to  science,  literature, 
and  all  the  arts.  The  promotion  of  higher  education 
and  the  general  improvement  of  the  conditions  of 
society  were  an  object  of  constant  attention.  The 
little  meetings  of  the  Tasmanian  Society  in  the 
library  of  Government  House,  when  papers  on  scien- 
tific and  philosophical  subjects  were  read  and  dis- 
cussed, were  the  beginning  of  the  present  Royal 
Society  of  Tasmania,  which  has  done  much  good 
work.  A  national  museum  and  a  college,  which  was 
intended  to  be  a  nucleus  of  a  university,  were  founded. 
The  popular  interest  in  science  was  increased  by  visits 
from  the  French  discovery  ships  in  1839,  and  the 
Erebus  and  Terror  in  1840.  Strzelecki,  too,  who  has 
already  been  mentioned  in  connection  with  the  dis- 
covery of  gold  in  New  South  Wales,  made  a  long 
stay  in  Tasmania.  Her  Majesty's  ship  Beagle  was 
making  a  detailed  survey  of  the  coast  and  rivers,  and 
the  Fly  about  the  same  time  was  engaged  in  similar 
work  ;  so  that  the  interest  of  colonists  took  a  much 


204  PRECEDING    CONSTITUTIONAL    GOVERNMENT. 

higher  plane,  and   an   entirely  new   spirit   pervaded 
society. 

Politically,  however,  this  period  was  a  turbulent 
one.  Transportation  was  resumed  on  a  large  scale  in 
1841,  and,  as  the  influx  of  criminals  increased,  the 
free  immigration  correspondingly  fell  off.  The  free 
settlers  began  to  be  alarmed.  Property  fell  in  value 
and  trade  was  depressed.  The  fact  that  it  became 
necessary  to  pass  a  new  insolvency  law  throws  a 
side-light  on  the  commercial  situation,  and  naturally 
enough,  as  the  shoe  began  to  pinch,  the  clamour  for 
responsible  government  was  renewed  with  vigour. 
But  the  claims  of  the  islanders  were  disregarded. 
When  partially  representative  councils  were  granted 
to  the  other  colonies  in  1842,  it  was  pointed  out  by 
the  Secretary  of  State  that  no  constitution  could  be 
conferred  on  Van  Diemen's  Land,  so  long  as  the 
majority  of  its  population  was  bond  ;  but  as  one  of 
the  principal  hopes  of  the  agitators  for  the  boon  was 
that  if  legislation  were  placed  in  their  hands  they 
would  be  able  to  stem  the  tide  of  transportation,  the 
explanation  was,  to  say  the  least  of  it,  unsatisfactory. 
In  August,  1843,  Sir  John  Franklin  retired.  He 
would  probably  have  stayed  longer  at  the  helm,  but 
he  fell  a  victim  to  the  jealousy  and  intrigue  which 
permeated  the  official  life  of  the  colony.  Mr.  John 
Montague,  the  Colonial  Secretary,  had  been  dismissed 
by  Franklin  for  insubordination.  He  at  once  went 
to  England  and  preferred  ex parte  charges  against  the 
Governor  of  incompetence  and  injustice,  with  the 
result  that  Franklin  was  recalled  without  a  chance  of 
stating  his  version  of  the  trouble.  The  later  history 


FINANCIAL   DIFFICULTIES.  205 

of  Franklin  is  too  well  known  to  need  more  than 
passing  mention  here,  for  the  voyage  of  the  Erebus 
and  Terror  in  search  of  the  North- West  Passage,  and 
the  untimely  fate  of  the  expedition,  is  familiar  to  all. 
Franklin  was  popular,  but  he  was  too  honest  and 
generous  to  be  a  success  as  the  governor  of  a  penal 
settlement.  His  memory  is  preserved  in  Hobart  by 
a  bronze  statue,  above  life  size,  which  stands  in 
Franklin  Square  not  far  from  the  site  of  the  old 
Government  House,  where  he  passed  the  troubled 
years  of  his  uncongenial  government. 

Sir  John  Eardley  Eardley-Wilmot,  Bart,  arrived 
before  Franklin  left,  and  entered  on  a  short  but 
stormy  term  of  office.  The  colony  was  in  a  very 
unsettled  state,  and  the  fears  of  the  free  colonist 
were  increased  by  the  transfer  of  the  convicts  from 
Norfolk  Island  to  Van  Diemen's  Land.  The  situation 
was  aggravated  by  financial  difficulties  ;  for  the  cost 
of  maintaining  the  huge  gaols  and  a  large  army  of 
police,  which  had  become  necessary,  was  a  burthen 
greater  than  the  settlement  could  bear  unaided.  A 
debt  of  £100,000  had  been  contracted  to  meet  these 
expenses,  and  on  the  other  hand  the  public  revenue 
had  diminished,  owing  to  the  practical  cessation  of 
free  immigration  and  the  consequent  decline  in  the 
receipts  from  sale  or  lease  of  Crown  lands.  The 
Governor  was  confronted  by  a  serious  problem,  and 
he  determined  to  solve  it  by  raising  the  ad  valorem 
duties  on  imports  from  5  to  15  per  cent,  and  by 
imposing  certain  rates  and  tolls.  The  introduction 
of  the  necessary  Bills  in  the  Council  was,  however,  the 
signal  for  more  pronounced  opposition  on  the  part  of 


206   PRECEDING    CONSTITUTIONAL   GOVERNMENT. 

the  colonists.  It  was  protested  that  the  police-and- 
gaols  charge  was  essentially  unjust.  If  the  colony 
had  to  receive  British  criminals,  the  very  least  Great 
Britain  could  do  was  to  pay  something  towards  the 
cost  of  keeping  them  in  order,  A  second  string  to 
the  opposition  bow  was  that  no  estimates  of  expen- 
diture were  furnished,  and  that  it  was  ridiculous  to 
expect  the  settlers  to  provide  funds  in  the  disburse- 
ment of  which  they  would  have  no  control.  Although 
Wilmot  may  have  sympathised  with  the  arguments 
advanced,  he  was  compelled  to  find  the  money 
somewhere  to  pay  for  the  maintenance  of  the  estab- 
lishments ;  and  as  no  better  system  than  that  already 
proposed  was  suggested  he  was  obliged  to  try  and 
force  the  obnoxious  Bills  through  the  legislature, 
with  the  aid  of  the  official  members.  Although  there 
was  much  excitement  outside  as  well  as  within  the 
Council  Chamber,  there  was  every  prospect  of  the 
Governor  obtaining  a  majority,  when  suddenly  six  of 
the  unofficial  members  withdrew  from  the  Chamber, 
thus  making  a  quorum  impossible,  and  effectually 
blocking  further  business.  After  some  time  had  been 
wasted  in  fruitless  negotiations,  the  "  Patriotic  Six," 
as  they  were  popularly  called,  resigned,  and  petitioned 
the  English  Government  on  the  points  at  issue.  They 
were  regarded  as  martyrs  to  the  constitutional  cause, 
and  made  a  triumphal  progress  through  the  country. 
Mr.  Richard  Dry,  whose  name  will  appear  again  in 
these  pages,  was  met  at  Launceston  by  an  admiring 
crowd,  who  took  the  horses  from  his  vehicle  and 
themselves  drew  it  amidst  the  greatest  enthusiasm 
through  the  streets  of  the  town.  The  reception  of  the 


THE   "  PATRIOTIC  S/*."  20/ 

other  ex-councillors  was  almost  equally  demonstrativCj 
but  the  Governor,  regardless  of  these  popular  expres- 
sions, gravely  accepted  the  tendered  resignations  and 
rilled  the  vacancies  in  the  Council  with  persons  who, 
if  less  able,  were  more  tractable.  The  Bills  were 
passed,  but  the  Governor  had  made  enemies  who 
contrived  his  downfall. 

The  financial  difficulty  was  before  long  solved  by 
the  English  Government  consenting  to  contribute 
two-thirds  of  the  cost  of  maintaining  the  police  and 
gaols,  but  the  news  of  this  decision  came  too  late 
to  relieve  Wilmot  in  his  unfortunate  position.  In 
October,  1 846,  he  was  suddenly  recalled,  on  account 
of  unfounded  and  cowardly  accusations  made  against 
his  private  character  by  one  of  his  political  opponents, 
who  had  returned  to  England.  The  charges  were 
indignantly  refuted  by  those  who  were  in  the  best 
position  to  form  an  opinion,  and  a  petition  in 
Wilmot's  favour  was  signed  by  the  Chief  Justice  and 
all  the  most  prominent  and  respectable  members  of 
the  community.  The  Secretary  of  State  was  com- 
pelled to  withdraw  the  accusations,  on  which  the 
Governor's  recall  had  been  based,  but  with  a  strange 
want  of  justice  declined  to  do  anything  to  recompense 
the  accused  for  the  injury  done  him.  Wilmot  re- 
mained in  the  island,  hoping  against  hope  that  his 
innocence  would  triumph ;  but  the  strain  and  dis- 
appointment were  too  great,  and  before  long  he  died 
broken-hearted.  During  his  short  tenure  of  office, 
substantial  progress  was  made  in  many  directions. 
In  1844  Mr.  W.  L.  Kentish,  an  engineer,  discovered 
the  open  and  fertile  plains  in  the  north-west  portion 


208  PRECEDING   CONSTITUTIONAL   GOVERNMENT. 

of  the  island,  and  a  little  later  Clarke's  Plains,  situated 
more  to  the  westward. 

Religion  and  education,  which  had  got  a  firm  foot- 
ing under  the  fostering  care  of  Franklin,  continued 
to  advance,  and  in  1842  the  colony  was  made  an  in- 
dependent diocese,  and  the  first  Bishop  of  Tasmania 
arrived  in  the  following  year.  Mr.  Latrobe  came 
across  from  Port  Phillip  to  take  charge  of  the 
Government  between  the  removal  of  Wilmot  and 
the  arrival  of  his  successor;  in  January,  1847,  Sir 
William  Denison  landed  and  entered  on  what  turned 
out  to  be  the  most  eventful  term  of  office  which  has 
fallen  to  the  lot  of  any  Governor  of  Tasmania.  The 
Secretary  of  State  for  the  Colonies  had  learnt  some- 
thing from  Wilmot's  financial  dilemma,  and  an 
engineer  officer  had  been  chosen  to  fill  the  post  of 
Governor,  in  the  hope  that  he  would  succeed  in  ren- 
dering the  labour  of  several  thousands  of  convicts 
more  useful  than  it  had  hitherto  been.  Denison  at 
once  took  steps  to  pacify  the  ruffled  feelings  of  the 
settlers,  and  the  "  Patriotic  Six "  were,  after  some 
slight  difficulty  with  Wilmot's  nominees,  restored  to 
their  places  in  the  Council ;  comparative  quiet  having 
been  thus  obtained  the  Governor  pushed  on  energeti- 
cally with  road-making  and  other  public  works. 

But  the  all-absorbing  question  of  transportation 
soon  disturbed  the  political  atmosphere.  One  of  the 
first  despatches  received  by  Denison  from  Earl  Grey, 
the  Secretary  of  State,  contained  the  words :  "  I  have 
to  inform  you  that  it  is  not  the  intention  of  Her 
Majesty's  Government  that  transportation  to  Van 
Diemen's  Land  should  be  resumed  at  the  expiration 


ANTI-TRANSPORTATION  LEAGUE.  20Q 

of  the  two  years  for  which  it  has  already  been  decided 
that  it  should  be  discontinued  ;  "  and  Denison,  al- 
though personally  favourable  to  the  continuance  of 
criminal  immigration,  promptly  communicated  this 
intelligence  to  the  Council.  Meanwhile,  however,  the 
English  Government  had  changed  its  intentions,  and 
both  the  despatch  and  Denison's  announcement  were 
repudiated.  The  colonists  were  indignant.  An 
anti-transportation  league  was  formed,  and  opposi- 
tion to  the  continuance  of  the  system  was  vigorously 
prosecuted.  The  efforts  of  the  advocates  of  the 
abolition  of  transportation  were  strenuously  seconded 
by  the  supporters  of  the  claim  for  representative 
government,  and  the  success  of  the  latter  was 
regarded  as  the  death-knell  of  the  existing  convict 
system.  In  1848  Earl  Grey  had  expressed  his  inten- 
tion of  introducing  a  measure  into  the  English  Par- 
liament providing  for  a  representative  Legislative 
Assembly  for  Van  Diemen's  Land,  and,  although 
Denison  had  urged  that  a  single  chamber  would 
be  dangerous  as  "  an  essentially  democratic  spirit 
actuated  the  mass  of  the  community,"  and  that  on 
this  account  "  a  second  independent  chamber  should 
be  formed,"  it  was  determined  to  model  the  new 
Council  on  the  lines  of  that  existing  in  New  South 
Wales.  In  1850  a  Bill  was  passed  granting  in  some 
degree  the  boon  craved  by  the  Council,  two-thirds  of 
the  members  of  which  were  to  be  elected  by  the 
people.  The  first  election  under  the  new  arrange- 
ment justified  the  hopes  of  the  opponents  of  trans- 
portation, for  nearly  all  of  the  sixteen  men  returned 
to  the  Legislature  were  pledged  to  oppose  as  far  as 

15 


210  PRECEDING    CONSTITUTIONAL    GOVERNMENT. 

lay  in  their  power  the  further  introduction  of  convicts. 
On  the  3Oth  of  December,  1851,  the  Council  met,  and 
the  first  divisions  taken  were  on  the  question  which 
was  engaging  so  much  attention.  An  address  to  the 
Queen,  protesting  against  the  continual  influx  of 
criminals  into  the  country,  was  carried  by  a  large 
majority,  and  thenceforward  the  matter  received  con- 
stant attention  until  in  a  despatch,  dated  December 
14,  1852,  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  (Lord  Aberdeen's 
Colonial  Secretary)  announced  that  it  had  been 
decided  to  finally  abolish  transportation  immediately. 
The  last  ship  carrying  a  cargo  of  criminals  sailed 
on  the  3ist  of  December,  1852,  and  in  May,  1853, 
an  official  notification  appeared  in  the  Hobart  Toivn 
Gazette  to  the  effect  that  the  colony  had  ceased  to 
be  a  receptacle  for  the  victims  of  British  crime. 

The  news  was  hailed  with  every  manifestation  of 
delight.  The  Governor  was  asked  to  proclaim  a  public 
holiday  to  commemorate  the  event,  but,  although  he 
declined  to  do  this  on  the  grounds  that  it  would  be  an 
acknowledgment  of  class  antagonism,  the  holiday  was 
nevertheless  held.  The  Anti-Transportation  League, 
which  had  during  the  struggle  become  a  most  power- 
ful organisation,  was  dissolved  in  1854,  and  next  year 
the  prayer  of  the  Council,  that  the  name  Van 
Diemen's  Land  should  be  buried  with  all  its  un- 
savoury associations,  was  granted,  and  the  colony 
after  half  a  century  of  troubled  life  entered  a  new  and 
happier  era  as  Tasmania, 


XV. 


UNDER  THE   NEW  CONSTITUTION. 
(1851-1893.) 

EVENTS  soon  occurred  to  still  further  purge 
Tasmania  of  the  criminal  taint ;  the  enormous  emi- 
gration of  adult  males,  consequent  on  the  discovery 
of  gold  in  Victoria,  induced  a  large  proportion  of  the 
ticket-of-leave  men  and  pardoned  convicts  to  cross  the 
straits  ;  and,  although  in  1852  payable  gold  was  found 
near  Fingal  and  Town  Hill  Creek,  the  phenomenal 
richness  of  the  Victorian  fields  dwarfed  all  other 
discoveries,  and  the  current  of  emigration  continued 
to  set  steadily  away  from  Tasmania.  Those  in 
authority  at  length  became  alarmed  at  the  extent  of 
the  exodus  from  the  island,  and  the  Governor  was 
urgent  in  his  appeals  to  the  English  Government  to 
replenish  the  exhausted  labour  market  by  sending 
out  large  numbers  of  free  immigrants.  Prices  of  the 
commonest  commodities  had  risen  to  a  fabulous 
height,  and  those  whom  duty  or  necessity  tied  to 
the  colony  underwent  an  exceedingly  uncomfortable 
experience.  In  spite  of  the  unpromising  outlook  and 
the  great  reduction  in  the  adult  male  population, 


212  UNDER    THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

public  interest  in  the  movement  in  favour  of  repre- 
sentative government  was  unabated.  The  Legislative 
Council  drew  up  a  scheme  for  a  new  constitution  the 
principal  characteristics  of  which  was  the  establish- 
ment of  an  Upper  Chamber,  which  it  was  suggested 
should  be  elected  by  the  whole  colony  on  a  £2$ 
freehold  franchise.  In  the  mean  time  the  existing 
Council  was  increased  in  number  from  24  to  33,  the 
proportion  of  nominated  to  elected  members  remain- 
ing the  same  as  formerly,  and  negotiation  and 
discussion  between  the  Governor  and  the  Council 
continued  with  regard  to  the  details  of  the  proposed 
alterations.  At  the  close  of  1854,  Sir  William  Denison 
retired  from  office,  and  was  succeeded  by  Sir  Henry 
Edward  Fox  Young  ;  shortly  afterwards  the  royal 
assent  was  given  to  an  "  Act  to  establish  a  Parliament 
in  Van  Diemen's  Land,  and  to  grant  a  Civil  List  to 
Her  Majesty."  The  new  House  of  Assembly  was  to 
contain  thirty  members,  elected  on  what  was  practically 
manhood  suffrage,  and  the  colony  had  been  divided 
by  the  old  Council  into  electoral  districts  for  this 
purpose.  An  Upper  Chamber  was  also  formed  under 
the  title  of  Legislative  Council  on  the  basis  men- 
tioned above,  the  number  of  members  being  limited 
to  fifteen.  Considerable  interest  was  taken  in  the  first 
elections,  but  in  most  cases  the  same  men  who  had 
occupied  seats  in  the  partially  nominee  body  were 
again  returned  as  elected  members  of  the  new  parlia- 
ment. 

The  first  Premier  was  Mr.  William  Champ,  who 
had  been  Denison's  Colonial  Secretary,  but  for  some 
little  time  the  life  of  successive  ministries  was  ex- 


DISCOVERY  OF  GOLD.  213 

tremely  short,  and  the  legislature  did  not  settle  down 
to  steady  work  until  the  reins  of  government  were 
taken  by  Sir  Francis  Smith.  The  material  prospects 
of  the  country  had  during  these  years  greatly  improved, 
for  the  irresistible  attraction  of  the  gold-fields  had 
somewhat  waned,  and  there  had  been  a  steady 
immigration  of  a  superior  class  of  persons  acquainted 
with  agricultural  pursuits.  The  signs  of  reviving 
vitality  and  expansion  soon  manifested  themselves. 
In  1856  the  expediency  of  constructing  a  railway 
between  Hobart  and  Launceston  was  seriously 
discussed,  and  in  the  following  year  Hobart  was 
lighted  by  gas,  and  a  good  supply  of  water  was 
obtained  for  Launceston  by  the  completion  of  exten- 
sive works.  Two  years  later  a  submarine  cable  was 
laid  to  Cape  Otvvay  from  Circular  Head  and  King's 
Island,  and  the  principle  of  self-government  was 
extended  by  the  creation  of  rural  municipalities  to 
look  .after  local  affairs.  In  1860  active  efforts  were 
made  to  develop  the  mineral  resources  of  the  country, 
and  prospecting  expeditions  were  equipped  by  the 
Government,  and  placed  under  the  direction  of  ex- 
perienced geologists.  Coal  had  been  discovered  ten 
years  previously  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the  Don, 
but,  as  the  seams  had  not  hitherto  been  extensively 
worked,  experiments  to  test  its  quality  were  now 
undertaken. 

The  advance  of  education  kept  pace  with 
material  development.  In  1854  a  Central  Board  ot 
Education  had  been  appointed,  consisting  of  the 
Executive  and  Legislative  Councils,  but  three 
years  later  the  question  of  public  instruction  again 


214  UNDER   THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

attracted  attention,  and  efforts  were  made  to  found 
a  Tasmanian  university.  Matters  were,  however, 
scarcely  far  enough  advanced  to  make  this  desirable  ; 
so  a  compromise  was  effected.  The  old  Board  was 
dissolved,  and  an  Act  passed  appointing  a  Council 
of  Education  with  authority  to  grant  the  degree  of 
Associate  of  Arts,  and  alse  to  vote  annually  to  suitable 
students  two  scholarships  worth  £200  each  to  be  held 
for  four  years  at  an  English  university.  The  same 
difficulties  which  had  been  felt  in  New  South  Wales, 
in  connection  with  State  aid  to  religion,  about  this 
time  called  for  consideration.  The  democratic  spirit 
of  the  colonists  was  opposed  to  the  maintenance  or 
recognition  of  any  established  church,  and  it  was 
impossible  to  render  assistance  to  all  denominations 
from  the  public  treasury,  first  on  account  of  the 
continued  friction  and  jealousy  which  would  be  cer- 
tain to  result,  and,  secondly,  on  account  of  the  heavy 
strain  which  such  a  charge  would  be  on  the  finances 
of  the  colony.  A  Bill  authorising  the  Government  to 
raise  a  loan  of  £100,000,  to  provide  funds  to  commute 
the  annual  aid  then  paid  to  religious  bodies  was 
passed  in  1859,  but  the  measure  which  finally  freed 
the  treasury  from  claims  on  account  of  religious 
endowment  was  delayed  by  one  cause  or  another 
until  1869,  when  it  at  last  received  the  royal  assent. 

During  the  next  few  years  there  is  little  to  record 
beyond  the  efforts  made  to  push  on  public  works. 
The  demand  of  the  people  for  roads  and  railways, 
and  a  liberal  public  works  policy  became  imperative, 
so  that  in  1864  Parliament  voted  no  less  than  £106,000 
for  roads  and  bridges.  But  the  cry  for  railways  was 


MATERIAL   PROGRESS.  215 

not  appeased.  A  proposal  brought  forward  to  con- 
struct a  line  between  Launceston  and  Deloraine  in 
this  year  was  rejected,  on  the  grounds  of  extravagance  ; 
but  the  persistence  of  the  promoters  at  length  gained 
the  day,  and  in  1868  the  first  sod  of  the  new  line  was 
turned  by  the  Duke  of  Edinburgh,  who  was  then 
cruising  in  Australian  waters.  The  railway  was  to 
be  constructed  under  peculiar  conditions,-which  soon 
proved  unworkable.  The  Launceston  and  Western 
Railway  Company  were  the  nominal  proprietors  ;  but 
of  the  total  capital  required  the  company  only  pro- 
vided about  one-ninth  part,  and  the  Government 
advanced  the  rest,  the  interest  on  the  ,£400,000  thus 
lent  being  a  first  charge  on  the  profits  of  the  under- 
taking. Should  the  line  be  worked  at  a  loss,  it  was 
agreed  by  the  landholders  of  the  district  to  be  served 
that  a  rate  should  be  levied  to  meet  the  obligation  to 
the  Government.  Contrary  to  expectations,  for  the 
first  two  years  after  it  was  opened,  the  traffic  receipts 
of  the  line  barely  paid  working  expenses,  and  conse- 
quently the  landowners  were  called  upon  to  make 
good  their  promise  with  regard  to  the  interest  on  the 
£400,000.  The  attempt  to  levy  the  tax  was  met  with 
violent  opposition,  the  contributors  asserting  that  the 
agreement  had  been  rendered  void  by  a  concession 
which  had  been  made  to  the  Main  Line  Company 
subsequent  to  their  signing  it.  Legal  proceedings 
were  instituted  to  compel  payment  of  the  rate,  where- 
upon sixty-five  of  the  magistrates  who  dwelt  in  the 
northern  district  petitioned  the  Governor,  requesting 
him  to  intervene  and  cause  the  suspension  of  prosecu- 
tions. This  Mr.  Du  Cane— the  then  Governor — 


2l6  UNDER   THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

declined  to  do,  and  twenty-six  of  the  petitioners 
consequently  resigned  their  positions  on  the  commis- 
sion of  the  peace.  The  agitation  continued  for  some 
time,  until  at  length  the  Government  agreed  to  take 
over  the  line  from  the  company,  arid  the  angry  land- 
owners were  relieved  from  the  terms  of  the  contract 
with  regard  to  the  special  rate.  The  Tasmanian 
Main  Line  Railway  Company,  although  started  under 
much  more  favourable  conditions,  fared  little  better 
than  the  Launceston  and  Western.  The  concession 
to  construct  a  railway  from  Hobart  to  Launceston  was 
granted  in  1 870,  but  the  line  was  not  completed  for 
traffic  for  six  years.  After  a  troubled  existence,  on 
account  of  disputes  first  as  to  the  route  chosen,  and 
then  other  points  of  disagreement,  the  railway  was 
recently  bought  by  the  Government  for  £1,106,500, 
payable  in  3^-  per  cent  inscribed  stock. 

The  practical  failure  of  private  companies  induced 
the  Government  to  itself  undertake  railway  construc- 
tion, and  from  1885  to  the  present  time  not  a  year 
has  passed  without  some  material  improvement  in 
the  railway  service  of  the  colony.  The  increase  in 
railways  was  accompanied  by  an  equal  activity  in 
road-making,  jetty-building,  and  telegraph  extension, 
and  these  public  undertakings  are  perhaps  one  of  the 
surest  indications  of  the  industrial  progress  of  the 
people. 

Allusion  has  already  been  made  to  the  discovery  of 
coal  as  well  as  the  prospecting  expeditions  which  were 
equipped  at  the  time  when  the  Governor  dreaded  the 
depopulation  of  the  island  on  account  of  the  rush  to 
the  Victorian  gold-fields.  In  spite  of  the  efforts 


218  UNDER   THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

then  made,  nothing  of  any  very  great  importance 
resulted,  nor  had  the  mineral  possessions  of  Tasmania 
much  influence  upon  its  property  until  the  dis- 
coveries of  tin  at  Mount  Bischoff  in  1871.  When 
the  lodes  were  worked,  Mount  Bischoff  proved  to  be 
one  of  the  richest  tin  mines  in  the  world,  and  its 
opening  was  the  commencement  of  much  greater 
activity  generally.  In  the  following  year  iron  ore, 
which  abounds  over  a  very  large  area,  was  worked  by 
a  strong  company,  which  erected  a  fine  plant  and  ex- 
pended a  considerable  sum  of  money.  But  unfortu- 
nately it  proved  impossible  to  produce  a  marketable 
article,  owing  to  the  extreme  hardness  and  brittleness 
of  the  iron,  due  to  the  presence  of  chromium  in  the  ore. 
It  is  quite  possible,  however,  that  this  difficulty  will  be 
overcome,  with  the  result  that  the  iron  deposits  will 
be  one  of  the  most  valuable  possessions  of  the  colony. 
Other  metals,  including  gold,  silver,  and  copper  have 
been  found,  and  to  some  extent  worked,  and  there  is 
every  reason  to  believe  that  Tasmania,  like  her  neigh- 
bours, contains  enormous  mineral  wealth. 

The  constitution,  as  originally  devised,  had  on  the 
whole  worked  admirably.  There  were  of  course  now 
and  again  slight  conflicts  between  the  two  houses,  but 
in  most  instances  the  business  of  the  country  had  not 
seriously  suffered,  and  matters  had  been  arranged  by 
mutual  concessions  and  co-operation.  In  1870,  how- 
ever, the  democratic  spirit — with  its  inherent  antipathy 
to  any  privileges  or  claims  based  upon  the  posses- 
sion of  property — gained  the  ascendency,  and  an 
amendment  of  the  Constitution  Act  was  carried, 
reducing  the  leasehold  franchise  from  £10  to  £7,  and 


EXTRAVAGANCE   OF   THE   GOVERNMENT.       2IO. 

extending  the  elective  right  to  all  in  receipt  of  salary 
amounting  to  £80  per  annum.  At  the  same  time  the 
number  of  members  in  the  Council  was  increased  by 
one,  and  in  the  Assembly  by  two.  The  change  did  not 
make  any  very  great  difference  in  the  character  of  the 
Legislature,  and  the  Council  continued  to  act  as  a 
wholesome  check  to  the  Lower  House.  This  body 
frequently  displayed  an  ambition  and  enterprise  in- 
volving large  expenditure  of  money  which,  if  not  care- 
fully watched,  would  probably  have  landed  the  colony 
in  serious  difficulties.  The  extravagance  of  the 
Government  did,  indeed,  reduce  the  finances  to  a  very 
unsatisfactory  condition  by  1879,  and  led  to  the  most 
heated  contest  between  the  two  houses  which  has  yet 
taken  place.  The  estimates  of  expenditure  in  that 
year,  as  passed  by  the  Assembly,  greatly  exceeded 
the  estimated  revenue,  and  the  Council,  when  the  neces- 
sary measures  came  before  them,  declined  to  sanction 
appropriations  to  meet  which  there  would  apparently 
be  insufficient  funds  available.  The  Government  were 
indignant,  and  disputed  the  right  of  the  Council  to 
amend  "  money  bills  ; "  but  the  Upper  House  stood 
firm  and  refused  to  pass  more  than  six  months'  supply 
unless  the  estimates  were  brought  into  harmony.  The 
fight  was  long  and  bitter,  and  as  no  money  could 
legally  be  spent  until  the  Appropriation  Act  was 
passed,  the  Council,  after  six  months  of  the  year  had 
gone  by,  relented  so  far  as  to  grant  supply  for  eight 
months,  so  that  ordinary  engagements  could  be  met ; 
and  Parliament  was  then  prorogued.  Ministers  were 
urgent  in  their  prayers  for  a  dissolution,  but  as  the 
Governor  refused  to  grant  it  and  could  not  be  per- 


220  UNDER   THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

suaded  to  coerce  the  Council,  the  Government  resigned, 
and,  a  new  ministry  being  formed  by  Mr.  Giblin, 
the  strife  was  ended  by  the  imposition  of  fresh 
taxation,  which  brought  the  estimated  income  to 
approximately  the  same  sum  as  it  was  desired  to  ex- 
pend. The  new  taxes  comprised  a  duty  of  gd.  in  the 
pound  on  the  annual  value  of  real  and  personal  estate, 
a  revision  of  the  charges  at  the  customs  house,  and 
an  excise  duty  of  3d.  per  gallon  on  beer.  The 
feeling  of  the  people  was  one  of  relief  that  a  solution 
of  the  difficulty  had  been  found  before  matters  reached 
the  extreme  point  which  had  caused  so  much  incon- 
venience and  misery  in  Victoria.  The  comparatively 
even  tenor  of  public  affairs  was  resumed  ;  no  further 
important  conflicts  between  the  two  branches  of  the 
Legislature  took  place,  and  no  alteration  in  the  Con- 
stitution was  demanded  for  the  next  six  years.  By 
this  time  a  rearrangement  of  electoral  districts  had 
become  desirable,  for  some  of  the  old  divisions  were 
unsuited  to  the  changes  which  had  taken  place  in  the 
distribution  of  the  people  within  recent  years.  The 
opportunity  was  seized  at  the  same  time  to  enlarge 
both  branches  of  the  Legislature,  and  consequently 
the  Council  was  raised  to  eighteen  and  the  Assembly 
to  thirty-six  members,  while  the  general  democratic 
tendency  of  the  country  asserted  itself  by  still  further 
reducing  the  franchise,  although  what  was  practically 
manhood  suffrage  had  already  been  established. 

It  was  also  thought  desirable  that  the  country 
should  have  its  own  representative  in  London,  and, 
therefore,  in  1886  an  Agent-General  was  appointed,  to 
transact  the  business  of  the  colony  in  England. 


RESEMBLANCE    TO   ENGLAND.  221 

Possibly  from  the  fact  that  hitherto  the  island  has 
not  been  convulsed  by  any  sudden  flood  of  immigra- 
tion,  and  that  the  public  imagination  has  not,  to  the 
same  extent  as  elsewhere  in  Australia,  been  excited 
by  the  unexpected  acquisition  of  treasure,  Tasmania 
bears  much  greater  resemblance  to  the  old  world  than 
any  of  the  other  colonies.  Lying  to  the  south  of 
Bass  Straits  its  climate  is  cooler  than  that  of  the 
mainland,  and  the  fruits  and  shrubs  of  the  mother 
country  grow  luxuriantly.  Agriculture,  instead  of 
stock-raising,  is  the  main  industry  of  the  people,  and 
the  cultivation  of  English  fruits  has  become  an  exten- 
sive and  lucrative  business.  The  life  of  the  inhabi- 
tants is  quiet  and  uneventful,  and  the  stone-built  farm 
houses,  the  hawthorn  and  sweetbriar  hedges,  the  hop 
gardens  and  sunny  wheat  fields,  remind  the  immi- 
grant of  home.  Indeed,  the  general  appearance  of 
Tasmania  is  that  of  some  particularly  fertile  country 
district  of  England,  which  has  been  bodily  removed 
and  set  amid  the  blue  waters  and  smiling  skies  of  the 
far  south. 


VICTORIA. 
XVI. 

FIRST  SETTLEMENT. 
(1803-1839.) 

AT  the  beginning  of  the  century,  the  activity  of 
the  French  in  the  South  Pacific  caused  King  grave 
concern;  and  he  was  earnest  in  his  representations  to 
the  British  Government  that  no  time  should  be  lost  in 
taking  effective  possession  of  the  land  to  the  south- 
ward of  Sydney.  An  expedition  was  therefore  fitted 
out  in  England  and  placed  under  the  command  of 
Colonel  Collins,  who  has  already  been  mentioned  as 
the  first  Judge- Advocate  of  New  South  Wales  ; 
in  April,  1803,  the  little  band  set  sail  in  the  frigate 
Calcutta  and  the  storeship  Ocean.  After  a  compara- 
tively uneventful  voyage  the  vessels  arrived  off  Port 
Phillip  in  October,  and  Collins,  before  landing  his 
charges,  spent  two  days  in  examining  in  small  boats 
the  land  round  the  bay.  But  he  was  unfortunate  in 
the  spots  visited,  for  he  found  sandy  soil  and  shallow 
shores  with  an  absence  of  fresh  water  at  all  the  points 


EXPEDITION    UNDER    COLLINS.  22$ 

inspected,  and  the  reports  of  the  other  officers,  whom 
he  sent  out  to  make  explorations,  only  increased  the 
unfavourable  impressions  he  had  formed.  It  is  true 
that  good  land  and  fresh  streams  were  believed  to 
exist  farther  up  the  bay  ;  but  Collins  had  a  morbid  fear 
of  the  natives,  and  the  announcement  that  they  had 
been  met  with  in  large  numbers  near  the  most  pro- 
mising country  was  quite  enough  to  make  him  cling 
persistently  to  the  coast.  After  a  few  days  spent  in 
fruitless  search,  as  he  had  received  peremptory  orders 
to  discharge  the  storeship  without  delay  on  his  arrival, 
the  convicts,  soldiers,  and  settlers  were  landed  on  a 
narrow  neck  of  country  forming  the  southern  shore  of 
the  bay  about  five  miles  from  its  entrance.  The  only 
fresh  water  to  be  had  at  this  place  was  obtained  by 
sinking  perforated  casks  in  the  sand,  while  the  soil 
appeared  quite  unsuitable  for  cultivation,  and  the 
nearest  good  timber  was  fourteen  miles  away.  Collins 
was  very  much  disgusted  and  took  a  gloomy  view  of  the 
future  ;  but  as  his  settlement  was  subordinate  to  the 
Governor  in  Sydney,  he  was  unable  to  move  until 
advice  and  instruction  from  King  had  been  obtained. 
An  open  boat  was  therefore  immediately  sent  round 
to  Sydney  with  a  despatch  pointing  out  the  failure  of 
the  efforts  to  find  a  suitable  spot  for  the  new  colony, 
and  asking  leave  to  transfer  the  settlement  bodily  to 
Van  Diemen's  Land.  Meanwhile,  in  compliance  with 
the  orders  he  had  received  before  leaving  England, 
Collins  proceeded  to  discharge  the  Ocean;  but  the 
work  progressed  slowly,  for  the  wretched  sailors  and 
prisoners,  who  spent  most  of  their  time  up  to  their 
waists  in  the  sea,  carrying  cargo  ashore,  soon  became 


THE   SETTLEMENT  ABANDONED.  22$ 

sick  from  the  brackish  water,  which  was  all  they  could 
get  to  drink  from  the  casks. 

The  Ocean,  when  empty,  sailed  for  Port  Jackson, 
picking  up  on  the  way  the  boat  previously  despatched 
by  Collins ;  her  captain  was  thus  able  to  corroborate 
the  complaints  which  Collins's  letter  contained. 
Governor  King  had  but  little  choice  in  his  decision. 
Collins's  prayer  for  permission  to  abandon  Port  Phillip 
was  so  urgent,  and  contained  such  a  disparaging 
description  of  the  country,  that  it  was  impossible  to 
refuse ;  at  the  same  time,  had  he  been  instructed  to 
remain,  it  would  have  been  necessary  to  strengthen 
the  military  guard  under  his  command  to  relieve  him 
from  fears  of  the  natives,  whilst  at  this  moment  it 
would  have  been  madness  to  weaken  the  garrison  at 
Sydney.  King,  therefore,  though  fully  impressed  with 
the  desirability  of  establishing  a  settlement  in  that 
part  of  the  country,  reluctantly  gave  his  consent,  offer- 
ing Collins  the  choice  of  Port  Dalrymple  in  the  north 
or  the  Derwent  in  the  south  of  Van  Diemen's  Land. 
The  Ocean  was  sent  back  to  take  the  party  across  the 
straits,  and  the  Lady  Nelson  sailed  with  her  to  render 
such  assistance  as  might  be  needed.  These  two 
vessels  arrived  at  the  camp  in  December,  1803,  and 
the  Calcutta  at  once  left  for  Sydney. 

With  all  possible  haste  Collins  packed  his  baggage 
and  stores,  and  turned  his  back  on  a  country  of  un- 
pleasant memories  ;  but  several  trips  had  to  be  made 
before  the  whole  party  could  be  embarked,  and  the 
territory  was  not  entirely  vacated  till  the  end  of 
January,  1804. 

The  convicts  during  Collins's  occupation  had  be- 
16 


226  FIRST  SETTLEMENT. 

havcd  fairly  well.  Twelve  absconded,  but  all  but  two 
returned,  who  had,  it  was  supposed,  fallen  a  prey 
to  the  natives.  One,  however,  William  Buckley, 
was  found  thirty  years  afterwards  living  on  friendly 
terms  with  the  aborigines.  For  more  than  twenty 
years  the  Port  Phillip  district  was  strangely  neglected, 
and  it  was  not  till  the  glowing  reports  of  the  explora- 
tions of  Messrs.  Hume  and  Hovell,  and  further 
rumours  of  an  intended  French  colony,  had  been  re- 
ceived in  Sydney,  that  the  formation  of  a  settlement 
in  the  country  was  again  attempted.  Unfortunately 
Hovell  instead  of  Hume  had  the  ear  of  the  authori- 
ties, and  the  mistake  he  had  made  between  Port 
Phillip  and  Western  Port  was  the  cause  of  another 
failure.  Captain  Wright,  with  a  small  party  of 
prisoners  and  soldiers,  and  Hovell  to  guide  them, 
landed  at  Western  Port,  but  a  more  unsuitable  spot, 
barren  and  unapproachable  as  it  was,  on  account  of 
the  mud-flats  lining  the  shores,  could  scarcely  have 
been  chosen  ;  when  it  was  found  that  the  French 
had  already  landed  and  departed,  permission  was 
given  to  the  commander  to  withdraw,  and  Victoria 
was  for  the  second  time  abandoned  as  useless  and 
uninhabitable. 

It  is  not  probable  that  after  two  such  failures  the 
Government  would  have  made  any  further  effort,  had 
not  their  hands  been  forced  by  the  enterprise  of  some 
colonists  from  Van  Diemen's  Land.  In  very  early 
days  there  had  been  small  permanent  whaling 
stations  along  the  coast;  but  in  1834  the  Henty 
Brothers  were  so  favourably  impressed  with  the 
appearance  of  the  pasture  lands  behind  Portland  Bay 


THE  HENTY  FAMILY.  22 7 

that  they  determined  to  cross  the  straits  from  Laun- 
ceston  and  cultivate  the  unoccupied  territory.  Their 
father  was  one  of  those  who,  in  1828,  had  been 
attracted  by  the  scheme  for  settling  Western  Australia, 
and,  being  a  man  of  means,  had  obtained  a  large  grant 
of  land  in  that  colony.  But  when  one  of  his  sons  had 
seen  the  barren  wastes  which  were  being  lavishly 
granted  to  immigrants,  he  reported  so  adversely  that 
the  destination  of  the  Henty  family  was  changed  to 
Van  Diemen's  Land.  The  father  and  eight  sons  all 
followed  farming  pursuits,  but  before  long  the  re- 
stricted pastures  of  the  island  became  too  small  for 
the  flocks  and  herds,  which  had  multiplied  rapidly. 
Edward  Henty,  therefore,  went  in  search  of  a  new 
home,  and  settled  at  Portland  Bay.  After  he  had 
been  living  there  some  little  time,  two  of  his  brothers 
joined  him,  and  agriculture,  stock-raising,  and  whaling 
were  prosecuted  with  great  success.  There  was,  how- 
ever, one  serious  drawback  ;  for  the  Secretary  of  State, 
when  applied  to,  refused  to  grant  the  Messrs.  Henty 
any  title  to  the  lands  of  which  they  had  taken  posses- 
sion. In  this  particular  case  no  serious  inconvenience 
was  experienced,  for  other  claimants  did  not  appear ; 
but  a  similar  enterprise,  which  was  undertaken  a  few 
years  later,  brought  matters  to  a  crisis,  and  forced  the 
authorities  to  abandon  the  idea  of  confining  occupation 
to  the  districts  immediately  surrounding  the  chief  seat 
of  government. 

In  1834  a  company  was  formed  in  Tasmania  to 
acquire  land  and  engage  in  stock  breeding  at  Port 
Phillip.  John  Batman,  the  promoter  and  leader  of 
the  enterprise,  was  a  remarkable  man.  A  native  of 


228  FIRST  SETTLEMENT. 

New  South  Wales,  he  had  crossed  to  Van  Diemen's 
Land  when  little  more  than  a  boy,  and  there  had 
distinguished  himself  in  the  chase  and  capture  of 
bushrangers,  and  later  by  the  marked  success  which 
attended  his  efforts  to  subdue  the  aborigines  by 
peaceful  means.  For  some  years  he  farmed,  but  his 
adventurous  spirit  was  always  craving  for  fresh 
excitement,  and  in  1827  he  applied  to  the  Governor 
of  New  South  Wales  for  permission  to  occupy  the 
country  around  Western  Port.  This  request  could 
not  be  granted ;  to  authorise  detached  settlements 
would  have  been  directly  contrary  to  the  instructions 
of  the  Secretary  of  State.  But  the  refusal  in  no 
way  quenched  Batman's  aspirations,  and  in  1834  he 
became  one  of  an  association  of  eight  members 
which  had  determined  to  obtain  possession  of  the 
fertile  country  at  Port  Phillip  without  the  sanction  or 
aid  of  the  Government.  The  roll  of  Batman's  little 
company  contained  the  names  of  many  prominent 
and  influential  men  in  Van  Diemen's  Land,  and  the 
fact  that  Batman  himself  was  to  be  the  pioneer  was 
sufficient  to  assure  reasonable  prospects  of  success. 
A  little  vessel  of  fifteen  tons  burthen,  the  Rebecca^ 
was  procured,  and  John  Batman,  taking  with  him 
some  New  South  Wales  blacks  and  a  few  white  men, 
set  sail  for  Port  Phillip.  Bad  weather  was  met  with, 
and  the  passage  took  nineteen  days,  but  at  last,  on 
May  29,  1835,  the  weary,  uncomfortable  voyage  was 
finished,  and  the  little  party  of  adventurers  landed  at 
Geelong.  Batman  was  in  possession  of  the  chart 
made  by  Flinders  of  the  bay  and  its  surroundings, 
and  early  on  the  morning  after  his  arrival  he  started 


BATMAN'S  COMPANY.  229 

off  to  explore  on  his  own  account.  As  he  trod  the 
rich  pasture  lands  comparatively  free  from  timber  he 
became  more  and  more  elated,  and  the  prospect  from 
the  top  of  the  Barrabool  Hills  increased  his  favourable 
opinion  of  the  country. 

But  Batman's  special  mission  was  to  purchase 
land  from  the  natives,  and  on  the  second  day  after 
landing  he  set  off  in  quest  of  some  of  the  aboriginal 
inhabitants.  Fires  had  been  seen  in  the  night 
some  distance  away,  so  at  daybreak  all  haste  was 
made  to  the  spot,  but  the  blacks  had  already 
left.  Batman  started  in  pursuit,  and  after  a  tiring 
journey  overtook  a  party  of  about  twenty  women 
and  a  large  number  of  children.  They  at  first 
showed  signs  of  fear,  but  appeared  to  understand 
the  expressions  of  amicable  intentions  which  were 
made  by  the  New  South  Wales  natives,  and  allowed 
the  visitors  to  approach.  The  usual  presents  of 
trinkets,  looking-glasses,  &c.,  were  made,  and  Batman, 
having  sown  the  seeds  of  friendship,  returned  to  his 
camp.  Explorations  were  continued  for  the  next  few 
days,  and  then  the  Rebecca  was  brought  further  up 
the  bay  and  moored  off  the  mouth  of  the  Yarra. 
With  fourteen  companions  armed  for  any  emergency, 
Batman  commenced  to  walk  along  the  left  bank  of 
the  river,  but  after  he  had  travelled  a  little  way  his 
course  was  interrupted  by  a  tributary  stream.  Two 
days  they  marched  along  through  glorious  pastures, 
and  towards  the  close  of  the  second  day,  to  their 
delight,  saw  the  smoke  of  fires  ascending  in  the 
distance  to  the  south-east.  Eagerly  they  pushed  on 
in  the  hope  of  coming  up  with  the  natives,  and  before 


230  FIRST  SETTLEMENT. 

many  miles  had  been  covered  overtook  a  man,  woman, 
and  three  children.  To  their  satisfaction  they  learned 
that  the  previous  intercourse  with  the  women  had 
been  discussed,  and  when  the  natives  led  them  to  the 
main  camp  of  the  tribe,  on  the  banks  of  the  Merri 
Creek,  they  were  received  with  manifestations  of 
friendship.  After  spending  a  night  amongst  the 
blacks,  Batman  next  day  proceeded  to  business,  and 
had  little  difficulty  in  effecting  an  advantageous 
purchase.  Skeleton  parchment  deeds  had  been  made 
out  in  Hobart  before  starting,  so  only  a  few  descrip- 
tive details  had  to  be  added,  and  then  a  contract 
between  Batman,  three  brothers  called  Jaga-Jaga, 
and  the  chiefs  of  the  Dutigalla  tribe  was  duly  signed 
and  sealed  by  the  persons  interested,  and  Batman 
obtained  possession,  as  he  thought,  of  all  the  country 
from  Indented  Head  to  Merri  Creek,  or  about  600,000 
acres  of  fine  pasture,  in  exchange  for  some  trinkets 
and  an  annual  tribute  of  blankets. 

Having  accomplished  his  mission,  he  bade  farewell 
to  the  natives,  and  started  to  retrace  his  steps,  but 
before  he  had  travelled  far  he  was  confronted  by  an 
extensive  swamp  and,  being  overtaken  by  darkness, 
had  to  pass  the  night  on  its  borders  ;  in  the 
morning,  while  making  a  circuit  to  avoid  it,  he  came 
upon  the  Yarra,  and  eventually  reached  the  Rebecca. 
The  next  day  was  spent  in  an  examination  of  the 
river,  and  Batman  selected  the  present  site  of 
Melbourne  as  the  best  place  for  a  village.  On  his 
return  the  Rebecca  was  taken  down  to  Indented  Head 
again,  where  three  whites  and  the  New  South  Wales 
natives  were  landed  to  retain  possession  of  the  newly- 


FOUNDATION  OF  MELBOURNE.  231 

acquired  property  and  commence  cultivation.     The 
remainder  of  the  party  sailed  for  Hobart  to  give  a 
report  of  their  proceedings  to  the  other  members  of 
the  association,  who  were  anxiously  awaiting   their 
return.     Batman's  account  of  his  experiences  created 
a  great  sensation  in  Van  Diemen's  Land,  and  many 
of  the   colonists   at   once   commenced   to   formulate 
schemes  for  following  his  example  and  settling  in  the 
fertile  country  across  the  straits.     The  members  of 
Batman's  association  were  not,  however,  quite  easy  in 
their  minds,  and  all  along  they  appear  to  have  had 
doubts   of    the   validity   of    the   formidable   looking 
parchment  deeds  which  represented  their  title  to  the 
land.     These  deeds  had  been  prepared  and  signed  in 
triplicate,  and  one  copy  was  sent  to  the  Governor  on 
the  2 5th  of  June  with  a  request,  which  was  influentially 
supported,  that  he  should  do  all  in  his  power  to  cause 
the  claim  of  Batman  and  his  friends  to  be  recognised 
by   the   authorities.      On    the    3rd  of  the    following 
month  Arthur  gave  his  answer.     In  the  first  place, 
he  pointed  out,  Port  Phillip  was  outside  his  jurisdic- 
tion, so  that,  even  were  he  willing,  he  could  do  but 
little  to  help  them ;  and  he  further  warned  them  that 
the  total  disregard  of  any  proprietary  interest  of  the 
natives,  evinced  by  the  legislation  in  regard  to  South 
Australia,  was  pretty  conclusive  evidence  that  a  claim 
based    on    an    alleged    sale    by   the    natives    would 
command  little  respect  in   England.     At   the   same 
time,  Arthur  wrote  strongly  to  the  Secretary  of  State, 
requesting   immediate   attention,  and    some   definite 
instructions  with  regard  to  the  novel  problems  which 
were  presenting  themselves  to  the  Government. 


232  FIRST   SETTLEMENT. 

But,  although  ownership  of  property  acquired  in 
Port  Phillip  was  questionable,  this  unsatisfactory 
circumstance  was  not  sufficient  to  prevent  many 
persons  from  going  there.  The  most  important 
expedition  was  arranged  by  John  Pascoe  Fawkner, 
who  had  been  one  of  the  children  in  the  party  which 
landed  at  the  time  of  Collins's  abortive  attempt  to  form 
a  colony  in  1803.  Fawkner's  idea  was  to  pursue  at 
Western  Port  much  the  same  policy  as  Batman  had 
followed  at  Port  Phillip,  and  a  schooner,  the  Enter- 
prise, was  procured  and  loaded  with  stock,  implements, 
seeds,  fruit  trees,  and  plants,  and  everything  else 
which  appeared  necessary  to  equip  a  small  agricultural 
and  pastoral  station.  On  July  27,  183 5,  the  Enterprise 
left  Launceston,  but  she  almost  immediately  fell  in 
with  very  bad  weather,  and  after  knocking  about  for 
three  days  was  still  close  to  the  Tasmanian  coast. 
Fawkner  by  this  time  was  so  worn  out  with  sea- 
sickness that  he  was  put  ashore,  and  the  voyage  was 
resumed  under  the  command  of  Captain  Lancey. 
Western  Port  was  at  length  reached  in  safety,  but,  as 
the  intending  settlers  were  displeased  with  the  ap- 
pearance of  the  place,  anchor  was  again  weighed, 
and  the  Enterprise  headed  for  Port  Phillip.  Captain 
Lancey  sailed  his  ship  right  up  to  the  Yarra's  mouth, 
and  then,  entering  a  rowing  boat,  proceeded  up  the 
stream.  They  first  went  up  the  Saltwater,  but 
retraced  their  course,  and,  again  entering  the  Yarra, 
camped  at  the  spot  which  Batman  had  marked  as 
a  suitable  site  for  a  village.  The  place  seemed  to 
exactly  meet  their  requirements,  so  next  day  the 
Enterprise  was  warped  up  and  made  fast  to  the  trees, 


JOHN  PASCOB   FAWKNER.  233 

and  the  cargo  carefully  landed.  The  whole  party  at 
once  set  to  work  to  clear  the  ground  and  prepare  it 
for  cultivation  ;  they  were  busily  engaged  in  this 
way  when  they  were  suddenly  interrupted  by  the 
appearance  on  the  scene  of  Mr.  Wedge,  one  of 
Batman's  partners,  who  informed  them  that  they 
were  trespassing  on  the  company's  property.  Wedge 
endeavoured  to  prove  his  title,  but  Captain  Lancey 
ridiculed  the  deed,  and  fell  to  work  again  at  clearing 
and  ploughing.  Wedge,  being  then  unable  to  do 
anything  more,  retired,  but  in  a  few  days  returned 
with  his  whole  party  to  forcibly  assert  his  claim  to 
the  land  which  Lancey  was  occupying.  Matters 
began  to  assume  rather  a  serious  aspect,  when  the 
rival  companies  camped  side  by  side,  but  at  length 
the  first-comers  prevailed  upon  Lancey  to  accept  £20 
and  cross  to  the  other  side  of  the  stream.  Not  long 
afterwards,  however,  Fawkner  arrived  with  more  men 
and  materials,  and  as  by  this  time  the  events  which 
are  about  to  be  recorded  had  upset  Batman's  claim, 
the  river  was  once  more  crossed  and  the  old  site 
again  occupied. 

Although  Fawkner  was  the  principal,  he  was  not  the 
only  man  who  determined  to  make  the  Port  Phillip 
district  his  home,  and  numerous  little  bands  settled 
on  the  territory  within  twelve  months  of  Batman's 
return  to  Van  Diemen's  Land.  The  prospect  of 
grave  difficulties  arising  unless  some  proper  system 
of  survey  and  sale  of  land  were  immediately  intro- 
duced, caused  the  Governor  of  New  South  Wales, 
Sir  Richard  Bourke,  to  issue  a  proclamation  without 
waiting  for  the  decision  of  the  Secretary  of  State, 


234  FIRST  SETTLEMENT. 

in  answer  to  Governor  Arthur's  despatch  from 
Van  Diemen's  Land.  Batman's  treaty  with  the 
natives  was,  Bourke  declared,  void  as  against  the 
rights  of  the  Crown,  and  all  persons  occupying  land 
in  the  Port  Phillip  district  were  trespassers  unless 
they  were  possessed  of  the  ordinary  license  from  the 
Government.  The  situation  was  a  perplexing  one, 
for  a  proposal  of  Bourke's  to  form  a  small  settlement 
at  Twofold  Bay  on  the  south  coast  of  New  South 
Wales  had  just  been  rejected  by  the  Secretary  of 
State,  on  the  grounds  that  the  endeavour  should  be 
to  concentrate  the  population  and  not  to  scatter  it 
over  a  wide  area,  principally  for  the  reason  that 
if  the  limits  of  occupation  were  restricted  it  was 
believed  the  cost  of  the  administration  of  justice  and 
general  government  would  be  smaller.  Of  course  it 
was  simple  enough  for  a  governor  to  refrain  from 
forming  new  posts  ;  but  what  was  to  be  done  when  the 
new  posts  formed  themselves,  and  then  demanded  the 
protection  and  administrative  benefits  enjoyed  by  the 
rest  of  the  community  ?  As  Bourke  pointed  out  to 
the  Secretary  of  State,  the  question  had  now  become, 
how  best  to  direct  this  new  development  in  coloni- 
sation, not  how  to  prevent  the  settlement  of  the 
territory.  Pending  other  arrangements,  the  inhabi- 
tants had  themselves  selected  one  of  their  number  as 
arbitrator  in  disputes,  and  the  need  for  some  action 
by  the  executive  was  so  evident  that  Bourke  sent 
down  a  magistrate,  Mr.  George  Stewart,  to  report, 
and  (on  his  recommendation)  appointed  Captain 
Lonsdale  resident  magistrate,  supplying  him  with  a 
small  detachment  of  soldiers  to  enforce  his  awards 


BATMAN'S  TREATY  DECLARED  VOID.       235 

and  maintain  order.  This  done  he  awaited  de- 
spatches from  the  Secretary  of  State,  which  in  due 
course  arrived,  and  were  practically  to  the  effect  that 
the  English  Government  were  at  a  loss  as  to  the  best 
method  of  dealing  with  a  question  so  "  novel  and 
peculiar,"  and  were  content  to  leave  the  matter  to 
his  discretion.  Under  these  circumstances,  Bourke 
thought  it  advisable  to  visit  the  new  dependency 
himself,  and  accordingly  in  1837  he  journeyed  to  Port 
Phillip.  The  settlers  who  now  numbered  from  sixty 
to  seventy  families,  welcomed  him  with  enthusiasm, 
and  he  laid  out  and  named  the  streets  of  a  town 
which  he  called  Melbourne,  in  honour  of  the  Prime 
Minister  of  the  English  Government.  Bourke  was 
impressed  with  the  prospects  of  the  Port  Phillip 
colony,  and  on  his  return  recommended  the  Secretary 
of  State  to  appoint  a  Lieutenant-Governor  or  Com- 
mandant, advice  which  was  before  long  followed.  At 
the  same  time  he  considered  that  if  the  inhabitants 
desired  legislative  representation,  they  should  be  re- 
quired to  elect  members  to  attend  the  sessions  of  the 
Council  in  Sydney. 


XVII. 


THE   ADMINISTRATION   OF   MR.    LATROBE. 
(1839-1852.) 

UNDER  the  title  of  Superintendent,  Mr.  Latrobe 
was  sent  out  in  1839  to  take  charge  of  the  Port 
Phillip  settlement.  For  the  population  had  been 
largely  augmented  by  immigration,  and  new  towns 
at  Geelong  and  Williamstown  had  been  formed. 
Evidences  of  the  rapidly  increasing  trade  and  social 
requirements  of  the  people  were  to  be  found  in  the 
fact  that  two  Sydney  banks  had  opened  branches  in 
Melbourne,  in  addition  to  the  establishment  of  a  local 
bank,  and  two  newspapers,  under  the  titles  of  the  Mel- 
bourne Daily  News  and  Port  Phillip  Patriot  and  the 
Port  Phillip  Gazette,  had  succeeded  a  very  primitive 
journal  called  the  Advertiser.  Latrobe's  position  was 
not  an  easy  one,  for  administrative  difficulties  were  con- 
tinually appearing  in  the  Government  of  a  community 
which  more  than  doubled  itself  annually.  The  most 
unsatisfactory  matter  was  the  inability  of  the  author- 
ities to  keep  pace  in  survey  with  the  demand  for  land. 
In  June,  1837,  the  first  sale  of  half-acre  town  allotments 

took   place,  by  the   direction    of  Bourke,  when   the 

236 


A    SUPERINTENDENT  APPOINTED.  237 

average  price  obtained  was  £35,  and  a  few  months 
later  a  second  sale  was  held,  at  which  values  were 
about  the  same.  By  these  means  the  immediate  needs 
of  the  urban  population  were  met,  but  the  staff  of 
surveyors  and  draftsmen  at  Latrobe's  disposal  was 
quite  incapable  of  keeping  pace  with  the  applications 
for  runs,  while  the  frequent  changes  in  the  orders-in- 
Council  relating  to  the  sale  and  occupation  of  Crown 
lands,  threw  matters  into  still  worse  confusion.  Port 
Phillip  did  not  escape  the  consequences  of  too  great 
prosperity,  and  for  a  short  time  had  to  submit  to  the 
chastening  influences  of  depression  caused  by  reckless 
speculation. 

But  nature  was  too  bountiful  to  permit  the  stag- 
nation to  last  long,  and  the  rapidity  with  which  the 
settlement  grew  almost  justified  the  settlers  in  giving 
way  to  the  temptation  to  speculate.  It  is  needless,  here, 
to  follow  the  frequent  and  often  unreasonable  changes 
in  the  land  laws  which  took  place  about  this  time,  for 
all  the  colonies  were  treated  with  a  diluted  "  Wake- 
field  system,"  but  in  doses  too  weak  to  give  a  fair 
trial  to  the  theory,  and  applied  with  a  singular  want 
of  discrimination.  In  1842  an  Act  had  been  passed 
in  the  English  Parliament  granting  the  inhabitants  of 
Port  Phillip  authority  to  elect  six  representatives  in 
the  Legislature  of  New  South  Wales.  But  although 
this  arrangement  met  every  reasonable  requirement, 
it  was  not  sufficiently  liberal  to  satisfy  the  ambition 
of  the  new  colony.  An  agitation  for  total  separation 
from  New  South  Wales  had  commenced  in  the  very 
infancy  of  the  community,  and  in  1844  this  movement 
took  concrete  form  in  a  resolution  submitted  by  Dr. 


238      THE   ADMINISTRATION   OF  MR.   LATROBB. 

Lang,  one  of  the  members  for  Port  Phillip  in  the 
Legislative  Council  in  Sydney.  Dr.  Lang  moved  that 
the  immediate  erection  of  the  Port  Phillip  district  into 
a  separate  colony  was  advisable,  but  the  motion  was 
rejected  by  a  very  large  majority,  and  the  inhabitants 
understood  that  they  would  get  little  aid  from  New 
South  Wales  in  their  efforts  at  dismemberment.  Hav- 
ing failed  to  obtain  their  way  in  a  decorous  manner,  by 
an  expression  of  opinion  in  the  legislative  chamber,  a 
section  of  the  population  determined  to  call  the  atten- 
tion of  the  authorities  in  England  to  their  grievance 
in  a  somewhat  remarkable  fashion.  It  was  intended  to 
spurn  their  right  of  representation  in  Sydney  as  useless 
and  worthless,  and  to  nominate  no  one  for  the  posi- 
tions at  the  next  election.  This  plan  was,  however, 
frustrated  by  the  appearance  of  one  candidate,  duly 
proposed ;  as  he  declined  to  withdraw,  and  would 
be  elected  were  no  opposition  offered,  the  policy  of 
the  malcontents  was  suddenly  changed,  and  "  the 
Right  Honourable  Henry  Grey,  Earl  Grey,  in  the 
peerage  of  Great  Britain,"  the  then  Secretary  of  State 
for  the  Colonies,  was  nominated  as  his  opponent. 
The  burlesque  was  successful,  and  Earl  Grey  obtained 
a  majority  of  193  votes  in  a  total  poll  of  397  ;  but 
such  a  ridiculous  result  could  hardly  be  expected  to 
be  gravely  accepted  by  the  Governor,  and  Sir  Charles 
Fitzroy  promptly  declared  the  election  void,  and 
issued  a  fresh  writ  making  Geelong  instead  of  Mel- 
bourne the  place  of  nomination.  An  attempt  was 
made  to  re-enact  the  same  farce  on  this  occasion,  and 
the  Duke  of  Wellington,  Lords  Palmerston,  Brougham, 
and  Russell,  and  Sir  Robert  Peel  were  named  as 


FIRST  GOVERNOR   APPOINTED.  239 

candidates  ;  but,  fortunately,  some  local  men  were 
also  nominated  and  returned  at  the  head  of  the  poll. 
But  the  comedians  had  in  a  measure  achieved  their 
end,  for  the  attention  of  the  Secretary  of  State  was 
called  to  their  complaint,  and  a  select  committe'e 
appointed  to  inquire  into  the  matter,  which  recom- 
mended that  the  provinces  should  be  separated.  Earl 
Grey  promised  to  give  effect  to  their  recommendation, 
but  the  Government  of  which  he  was  a  member  going 
out  of  office,  the  necessary  legislation  was  delayed, 
much  to  the  disgust  of  the  impatient  agitators  in 
Melbourne.  At  length,  in  1850,  an  Act  was  passed 
authorising  the  division  which  was  so  much  desired, 
and  news  of  the  intended  step  was  welcomed  through- 
out the  Port  Phillip  district  by  general  public  rejoicing. 
Mr.  Latrobe  was  appointed  first  Governor  of  "  Vic- 
toria," as  the  new  colony  was  called  and  the  pre- 
liminary arrangements  necessary  for  establishing  a 
local  legislature  were  placed  in  the  hands  of  the 
Sydney  Council. 

Shortly  before  independence  had  been  effected,  the 
discoveries  of  gold  in  New  South  Wales  threatened 
to  depopulate  its  ambitious  offspring,  and  Latrobe 
found  his  subjects  rapidly  diminishing  in  numbers. 
It  seemed  that  the  only  hope  of  counteracting  the 
superior  attractions  of  the  mother  colony  was  for 
gold  to  be  found  in  Victoria  also  ;  and  public  meet- 
ings were  held  in  Melbourne,  at  which  a  "  Gold  Dis- 
covery Committee  "  was  formed  to  encourage  search 
for  the  mineral  within  the  boundaries  of  Victoria,  by 
offering  £200  as  a  reward  to  any  one  who  should 
bring  the  first  news  of  the  existence  of  a  payable 


240      THE   ADMINISTRATION  OF  MR.  L  AT  ROBE. 

gold-field  within  two  hundred  miles  of  Melbourne. 
The  inducement  was  sufficient  to  cause  many  people 
to  start  out  on  prospecting  expeditions,  and  before 
long  the  precious  metal  was  discovered  in  several 
places.  Rumours  of  the  presence  of  gold  in  Victoria 
had  been  heard  previously,  and  a  man  who  described 
himself  as  a  shepherd  had  in  1849  brought  to  Mel- 
bourne a  rich  quartz  specimen,  which  he  alleged  he 
had  obtained  on  the  Pyrenees  Range ;  his  story, 
however,  was  discredited,  and  the  matter  was  never 
followed  up.  Mr.  Campbell,  while  staying  with 
a  friend  at  Clunes,  found  gold  in  March,  1850,  but 
kept  the  matter  secret  until  July,  1851,  when  gold 
was  obtained  in  the  Yarra  Ranges,  at  Anderson's 
Creek,  and  in  the  quartz  rocks  of  the  Pyrenees.  In 
August  the  famous  Ballaarat  fields  were  discovered, 
and  in  the  beginning  of  September  news  of  the  finds 
near  Mount  Alexander  was  made  public.  By  the 
end  of  September,  1851,  the  tide  of  migration  had 
completely  turned,  and  thousands  of  greedy  fortune- 
seekers  poured  into  the  colony  by  land  and  sea.  As 
the  extraordinary  wealth,  first  of  Ballaarat,  then  of 
Mount  Alexander,  and  a  little  later  of  Bendigo, 
became  known,  the  crowds  which  trudged  along  the 
muddy,  dusty  tracks  to  these  places  rapidly  grew 
larger  and  larger.  In  the  autumn  of  1852  fully 
seventy  thousand  men  were  grubbing  for  gold,  and  at 
the  diggings  the  soil  for  miles  had  been  plundered  of 
its  treasure.  Before  there  was  any  diminution  in  the 
stream  of  immigrants  from  the  other  colonies,  the 
flood  was  swollen  by  hundreds  of  thousands  of  men 
who  came  from  Europe  and  America.  In  1840  there 


THE   GOLD-FIELDS.  24! 

had  been  under  10,300  people  within  the  limits  of 
Victoria;  by  1850  the  fertility  of  the  soil  had  attracted 
about  76,200  ;  but  five  years  later  the  population  had 
grown  to  364,300,  consequent  upon  the  rush  to  the 
gold-fields.  At  this  time  there  were  nearly  twice  as 
many  men  as  women  in  the  country,  and  the  acces- 
sion to  the  population  comprised  many  very  unde- 
sirable elements. 

The  situation  in  Victoria  was  very  different  to 
that  in  the  parent  colony.  For  one  thing,  in  Victoria 
the  original  population  at  the  time  of  the  discovery 
of  gold  was  far  smaller,  so  that  it  was  more  difficult 
for  the  government  to  suddenly  be  adjusted  to  meet 
the  changed  circumstances.  The  gold-fields  in  Vic- 
toria, moreover,  were  much  more  compact,  and  being 
nearer  to  the  coast  more  easily  reached.  Conse- 
quently, shortly  after  the  first  rich  finds,  enormous 
numbers  of  people  collected  in  comparatively  re- 
stricted areas.  On  the  banks  of  the  Yarrowee  at 
Ballaarat,  for  instance,  there  were  at  one  time  about 
forty  thousand  men  encamped.  About  twenty-five 
thousand  more  were  round  Mount  Alexander,  and  at 
the  Bendigo  diggings  fully  forty  thousand  miners  had 
gathered.  The  machinery  of  government  very  soon 
proved  utterly  inadequate  to  the  duties  it  was  called 
upon  to  perform.  Had  the  inhabitants  of  these 
camps  been  ordinary  orderly  citizens,  the  administra- 
tion of  affairs  would  have  entailed  organisation  and 
care,  but  in  communities  so  strongly  leavened  with 
criminals  and  reckless  vagabonds,  the  maintenance 
of  order  and  the  law  became  hopeless.  While  Tas- 
mania was  purged  of  the  worst  portion  of  its  crime- 

17 


242      THE   ADMINISTRATION  OF  MR.   LATROBE. 

stained  inhabitants  by  the  gold-rush,  the  motley 
crowd,  which  swarmed  like  ants  over  the  mud-heaps 
at  the  diggings,  contained  even  more  unruly  cha- 
racters than  the  Tasmanians.  Latrobe  seems  from 
the  first  to  have  realised  the  gravity  of  the  situation  ; 
but  he  had  no  really  capable  men  at  hand  to  help  him, 
and,  however  great  his  personal  exertions  might  be,  the 
formation  of  governing  machinery  out  of  nothing,  for 
a  population  that  doubled  itself  each  year,  was  a  task 
beyond  his  powers.  From  the  commencement  the 
regulations  and  licensing  arrangements  which  had 
been  formulated  by  Deas  Thompson  for  New  South 
Wales  were  adopted  by  Latrobe,  but  though  they 
might  be  satisfactorily  worked  with  a  comparatively 
small  collection  of  men,  they  were  quite  unsuitable 
to  the  turbulent  crowds  which  had  gathered  at 
Ballaarat  and  Bendigo.  The  monthly  inspection  of 
the  licenses  of  forty  thousand  unwilling  men  is  a  by 
no  means  light  task,  and  the  system  adopted  was 
open  to  very  great  abuse  in  its  application.  Those 
who  had  licenses  objected  strongly  to  being  con- 
stantly required  to  produce  them  to  satisfy  suspicious 
officials,  while  those  who  had  not  licenses  had  but 
little  difficulty  in  secreting  themselves  and  evading 
the  activity  of  troopers.  Acts  of  riot  and  lawlessness 
were  before  long  not  infrequent.  Bushranging  be- 
came common.  The  gold  escorts  were  waylaid  and 
robbed  after  the  troopers  who  were  protecting  them 
had  been  shot.  Even  vessels  in  the  harbour  were 
attacked  and  plundered. 

Much  of  this  crime  was  traced  to  the  Tasmanians, 
and    special    legislation   was   passed    to   protect   the 


CONVICTS   PREVENTION  ACT.  243 

colony  from  further  inroads  from  this  quarter.  By 
the  Convicts  Prevention  Act  of  1852  all  persons 
coming  from  Tasmania  were  required  to  prove  that 
they  were  not  convicts  before  they  were  permitted  to 
land,  and  the  captain  of  any  vessel  which  conveyed  a 
convict  to  a  Victorian  port  was  made  liable  to  a  fine 
of  £100.  But  it  was  too  late  to  take  protective 
measures  ;  the  harm  had  already  been  done ;  and  all 
the  undesirable  people  from  Tasmania  who  could  by 
hook  or  by  crook  get  a  passage  across  the  straits  had 
arrived.  A  spirit  of  discontent  was  inseparable  from 
the  miner's  occupation.  The  very  good  fortune  of 
some  bred  dissatisfaction  in  the  breasts  of  others,  and 
the  anger  of  those  who  had  toiled  all  day  in  the  heat 
to  wash  out  next  to  nothing  was  but  natural  when 
they  were  pounced  upon  by  the  police  and  com- 
manded to  show  their  license.  Some  men  of  course 
were  doing  well,  and  at  one  time  probably  many 
were  winning  from  .£40  to  £50  worth  of  gold  a  day  ; 
but  for  every  stroke  of  luck  there  must  have  been 
many  bitter  disappointments.  The  life  of  a  miner 
was  rough  in  the  extreme,  and  a  large  proportion  of 
those  who  flocked  to  the  diggings  were  quite  unpre- 
pared for  the  hardships  and  discomforts  with  which 
they  had  to  contend. 

The  crowd  at  the  gold-fields  was  comprised  of  men 
of  every  class  and  nearly  every  nationality.  The 
banks  of  the  Yarrowee  presented  a  strange  appear- 
ance, with  the  eager  line  of  men  standing  shoulder 
to  shoulder,  washing  in  the  muddy  water  the  dirt 
brought  them  from  time  to  time  by  a  companion. 
A  little  further  back  the  earth  was  cut  into  ini 


244    THE  ADMINISTRATION  OF  AIR.  LATROBE. 

numerable  holes,  flanked  by  great  mounds  of  red  soil, 
in  and  around  which  men  busily  ran  or  dug  with 
feverish  energy.  At  night  the  scene  was  even  more 
weirdly  curious,  for  the  glaring  lights  of  the  theatres 
and  grog  shanties  joined  with  the  flaring  torches  and 
fires  of  the  miners  in  throwing  into  strong  relief  the 
shadows  of  the  tents  and  their  wild  surroundings. 
Above  all  rose  the  hum  of  a  city,  broken  now  and 
again  by  bursts  of  noisy  revelry.  Wealth  easily  won 
was  as  readily  squandered,  and  the  lucky  digger 
showered  gold  with  a  free  hand.  Prices  were  exorbi- 
tant, for  the  miner  drunk  with  fortune  seldom  asked 
for  change,  and  the  style  of  living  generally  was  reck- 
lessly extravagant. 

The  oppressive  prosperity  of  their  neighbours,  how- 
ever, caused  discontent  on  the  part  of  those  on  whom 
fate  had  not  yet  smiled,  and  the  feeling  of  irritation 
against  the  authorities  was  augmented  by  the  scramb- 
ling, inefficient  administration  of  the  law.  Twice  a 
week  "  digger  hunts  "  were  held  by  the  police,  and  all 
miners  who  could  not  produce  their  licenses  were 
seized  and  taken  ofif  to  the  commissioners'  camp, 
being  usually  chained  to  the  surrounding  trees,  until 
that  official  was  ready  to  deal  with  them.  Often 
their  tents  were  burnt  by  the  police,  and  not  infre- 
quently mistakes  were  made  and  flagrant  injustice 
perpetrated  upon  those  who  had  hitherto  obeyed  the 
law.  While  the  feeling  at  the  gold-fields  was  in  this 
irritable  state,  the  Government  blindly  endeavoured 
to  double  the  license  fee,  which  even  then  was  costing 
more  than  its  value  to  collect.  Latrobe's  new  execu- 
tive council  considered  that  in  view  of  the  large 


INCREASED   LICENSE   FEE.  245 

extra  expenditure  involved  in  the  regulation  and 
maintenance  of  order  at  the  gold-fields,  the  sum  of 
thirty  shillings  per  month  was  not  a  sufficiently  large 
contribution  to  the  public  revenue  by  those  who  were 
so  rapidly  winning  fortunes  from  the  soil.  Oblivious 
of  the  unfortunates  who  had  suffered  and  toiled  in 
vain,  Latrobe  was  urged  to  raise  the  monthly  fee  for 
a  permit  to  dig  for  gold  to  ,£3.  A  notice  was  there- 
fore promulgated  in  the  Government  Gazette,  in 
December,  1851,  to  the  effect  that  from  the  com- 
mencement of  the  following  year  the  increased  rate 
would  be  demanded.  It  was  also  hoped  that  by  this 
step  many  would  be  induced  to  desert  the  diggings 
for  more  settled  occupation  ;  for  all  other  industries 
were  crippled  by  the  dearth  of  labour,  and  prices 
and  wages  in  the  towns  and  indeed  throughout  the 
settlement  had  risen  to  unheard-of  figures.  Even  at 
the  ruinous  rates  offered  it  was  impossible  to  obtain 
servants,  so  that  every  one,  the  most  wealthy  in- 
cluded, had  to  perform  the  meanest  domestic  offices 
for  themselves  ;  while  it  was  probable  that,  unless 
some  change  were  effected,  the  coming  harvest  would 
remain  ungarnered,  and  the  flocks  unshorn.  Com- 
munication with  England  and  elsewhere  was  almost 
completely  suspended.  No  sooner  did  a  vessel  let  go 
her  anchor  in  Hobson's  Bay  than  the  crew  deserted 
and  went  to  try  their  fortunes  at  the  diggings. 

All  sorts  of  strong  measures  to  prevent  the  de- 
population of  the  towns  were  urged  upon  the  be- 
wildered governor,  but  they  were  all  impracticable, 
and  the  raising  of  the  license  fee  was  the  only  expe- 
client  which  gould  be  resorted  to  with  the  remotest 


246      THE   ADMINISTRATION  OF   MR.   LATROBE. 

prospect  of  success.  But  at  Bendigo,  Ballaarat,  and 
elsewhere  there  were  men  only  waiting  for  a  favour- 
able opportunity  to  defy  a  government  which  they 
knew  was  weak,  and  towards  which  they  had  no  feel- 
ings of  loyalty  or  respect.  A  few  days  after  the  pub- 
lication of  the  Gazette  notice  meetings  were  held  near 
Mount  Alexander,  and  language  was  used  which 
augured  ill  for  the  maintenance  of  order  in  the  future. 
So  hostile  did  the  mining  population  appear  that  the 
Government  was  filled  with  apprehension,  for  in  the 
case  of  any  serious  opposition  being  offered  to  the  col- 
lection of  the  tax  there  was  not  sufficient  force  avail- 
able to  compel  it.  Latrobe's  advisers  wavered.  On 
the  I  $th  of  December  a  meeting  numbering  from 
twelve  to  fourteen  thousand  persons  was  held  at 
Forest  Creek,  and  a  few  days  afterwards  a  similar 
gathering  assembled  at  Geelong.  The  proposed  fee 
was  denounced  as  exorbitant  and  tyrannical,  and  the 
exaction  of  any  fee  whatever  from  miners  was  described 
as  an  imposition  of  an  iniquitous  "  capitation  tax  on 
labour."  This  turned  the  scale,  and  the  Government 
on  the  1 3th  of  December  withdrew  the  notice  which 
had  produced  the  storm. 

Latrobe  recognised  the  serious  blow  that  had  been 
struck  at  the  authority  of  government,  but  he  was 
thankful  for  the  comparative  peace  which  followed 
capitulation.  By  this  time  the  population  had  increased 
enormously,  and  the  extravagance  of  the  miners  had 
made  trade  so  profitable  that  many  were  induced  to 
forego  the  diggings  and  cater  for  the  wants  of  their 
inhabitants.  Prices  remained  high,  but  a  develop- 
ment of  other  industries  took  place  more  commen- 


HARDSHIPS   OF  IMMIGRANTS.  247 


surate  with  the  growth  of  the  community.  The  f 
of  immigrants  continued  to  flow  as  strongly  as  ever 
towards  the  shores  of  Victoria,  and  the  hotels  and 
accommodation  houses  in  Melbourne  were  quite  in- 
sufficient to  provide  shelter  for  the  crowds  of  new- 
comers. In  the  reserves  and  open  spaces  the  ad- 
venturers pitched  their  tents,  but  as  at  these  canvas 
towns  there  were  no  sanitary  provisions,  and  no  proper 
control,  cleanliness  and  even  ordinary  decency  were 
an  impossibility.  At  length  the  miseries  of  the  im- 
migrants, many  of  whom  found  themselves  on  land- 
ing in  the  midst  of  surroundings  utterly  different  to 
anything  they  had  expected,  excited  the  pity  and 
benevolence  of  the  other  residents.  Temporary 
shelters  were  erected  to  house  the  families  who  could 
find  no  accommodation,  and  hulks  in  the  bay  were 
secured  for  the  use  of  single  women.  The  cost  of 
these  arrangements  were'  partly  borne  by  the  Govern- 
ment and  partly  defrayed  out  of  private  contri- 
butions. 


XVIII. 

THE  EUREKA    STOCKADE. 
(1852-1857.) 

IN  1852  a  despatch  was  received  from  the  Secretary 
of  State  for  the  Colonies  announcing  that  the  English 
Government  had  determined  to  hand  over  to  the 
various  provinces  the  revenue  derived  from  gold, 
since  it  was  thought  that  the  increased  cost  of  govern- 
ment on  account  of  the  gold-fields  would  make  it 
necessary  for  all  the  colonies  affected  to  largely 
increase  the  charge  for  police,  as  well  as  the  ex- 
penditure for  general  purposes.  At  the  same  time 
Latrobe's  prayer  for  reinforcements  was  complied 
with,  and  fifty  police  were  despatched  from  England 
and  a  man-of-war  ordered  round  to  Hobson's  Bay. 
These  additions  to  the  local  forces  were  sorely  needed, 
for  the  difficulty  of  guarding  the  traffic  on  the  roads 
to  and  from  the  gold-fields  had  been  increased  by 
the  opening  of  the  Oven's  diggings  in  June,  and  the 
spirit  of  resistance,  which  had  grown  greatly  since 
the  concessions  with  regard  to  the  increase  to  the 
license  fee,  made  it  necessary  for  the  authorities  to 
be  continually  in  readiness  to  quell  anticipated  out- 

348 


PROPOSED  EXPORT  DUTY  ON   GOLD.  249 

breaks.  Latrobe  longed  to  be  free  from  the  necessity 
of  collecting  a  tax  which  was  expensive  and  odious 
to  its  contributors,  and,  with  this  end  in  view,  recom- 
mended that  an  export  duty  on  gold  should  be 
substituted  for  the  license  fee,  only  such  an  amount 
being  charged  for  a  license  as  would  ensure  the 
registration  of  those  authorised  to  dig  for  gold.  The 
Export  Duty  Bill  was  introduced,  and  got  as  far  as 
the  second  reading  in  the  Council,  but  at  the  diggings 
the  Governor's  actions  were  misrepresented  and  used 
as  a  further  incentive  to  riot.  Meetings  were  held 
at  Forest  Creek,  at  which  it  was  determined  to  refuse 
to  pay  any  license  fee  at  all  if  an  export  duty  were 
charged ;  and  at  other  places,  more  especially  at 
Oven's,  crowds  began  to  get  alarmingly  insubordinate. 
Members  became  frightened,  and  the  Bill,  which  was 
the  beginning  of  the  disaster  which  clouded  Sir 
Charles  Hotham's  rule,  was  shelved. 

A  serious  disturbance  took  place  early  in  the 
following  year  at  Forest  Creek.  It  was  caused  by 
a  mistake  on  the  part  of  the  police,  who  burnt 
the  tent  of  an  innocent  man  under  the  impression 
that  he  was  engaged  in  illicit  selling  of  spirits. 
His  friends  and  associates  were  justly  indignant 
and  the  ever  ready  agitators  saw  their  chance. 
Meetings  to  denounce  the  authorities  were  held. 
Inflammatory  notices  were  posted  all  over  the  dig- 
gings, but  it  was  evident  that  a  desire  for  a  rupture 
with  the  Government  was  quite  as  strong  a  motive 
with  the  leaders  as  any  sympathy  with  the  sufferer. 
The  man  whose  tent  had  been  destroyed  was  com- 
pensated ;  but  further  signs  of  discontent  followed. 


250  THE    EUREKA    STOCKADE. 

At  the  beginning  of  August,  a  deputation  from 
Castlemaine  and  Bendigo  waited  upon  Latrobe  to 
make  certain  complaints  and  requests,  which  were 
very  like  threats  and  demands.  The  license  fee  they 
said  must  be  immediately  reduced  to  IDS.  a  month, 
paid  monthly  or  quarterly  at  the  option  of  the  licensee  ; 
facilities  should  be  given  to  miners  for  the  purchase 
of  land  for  cultivation,  and  the  mining  population 
should  be  directly  represented  in  the  Legislature. 
Latrobe  said  he  would  consider  what  they  had  laid 
before  him,  but  the  deputation,  disappointed  at 
not  having  obtained  some  definite  undertaking 
from  the  Governor,  called  a  public  meeting  in  Mel- 
bourne, which  was  largely  attended,  and  was  cha- 
racterised by  speeches  of  greater  violence  than 
wisdom.  At  Bendigo  it  was  decided  to  take  united 
action  to  force  a  reduction  of  the  fee.  It  was  de- 
termined that  a  few  men  should  tender  los.  to  the 
Commission  for  the  September  license,  and  that  the 
others  should  abstain  from  taking  out  any  license  at 
all  until  a  favourable  decision  by  the  Government  had 
been  arrived  at.  On  the  day  on  which  the  fees  were 
payable,  Latrobe  promulgated  a  lengthy  reply  to  the 
deputation.  He  pointed  out  that  whereas  the  direct 
cost  of  administering  the  gold-fields  had  amounted 
so  far  to  ;£6oo,ooo,  the  revenue  derived  from  licenses 
and  gold  export  had  only  amounted  to  a  little  over 
^"460,000 ;  so  that  the  demand  for  smaller  taxation 
was  unreasonable,  while,  moreover,  it  was  not  in  his 
power  to  alter  the  amount  until  a  law  had  been 
passed  by  the  Council.  Latrobe  appears  to  have 
been  sanguine  that  his  reasoning  would  be  heeded, 


COST   OF  GOVERNMENT.  251 

and  expressed  to  the  Secretary  of  State  a  belief  that 
"  the  license  for  September,  notwithstanding  all  the 
parade  of  resistance,  would  be  taken  out  without 
any  extraordinary  compulsory  measures  being  had 
recourse  to." 

Nevertheless,  he  thought  it  desirable  to  at  once 
send  reinforcements  to  the  disaffected  district,  and 
as  a  further  sop  to  the  aggrieved  diggers  a  resident 
of  Bendigo  was  nominated  to  the  Council.  But  this 
gentleman  was  unfortunately  repudiated  by  those 
whom  he  was  supposed  to  represent,  and  resigned. 
On  August  the  2/th,  a  procession  containing  about 
two  thousand  persons  marched  by  the  Commissioner's 
camp,  and  fired  shots  into  the  air  as  a  menace,  while 
those  deputed  to  tender  the  los.  fee  performed  their 
part.  Their  attitude  was  determined,  and  the  Chief 
Gold  Commissioner  and  the  Chief  Commissioner  of 
Police  sent  off  in  hot  haste  to  Latrobe  to  report  what 
had  occurred,  and  to  urge  that  "  the  reduction  of  the 
license  fee,  if  not  its  abolition  altogether,  is  inevitable." 
That  the  miners  would  bitterly  resist  any  attempt  to 
collect  the  prescribed  303.  was  evident,  and  the 
scared  officials  trembled  to  think  what  would  happen 
"  if  blood  should  once  be  shed."  With  such  advice 
from  those  whose  duty  it  would  be  to  enforce  the 
law,  Latrobe  yielded.  Instructions  were  sent  hurriedly 
to  Bendigo  that  no  attempt  was  to  be  made  to  assert 
the  power  of  the  Government.  If  the  miners  refused 
to  pay  the  fee  no  steps  were  to  be  taken  to  compel 
them,  although  Colonel  Valiant,  with  one  hundred 
and  fifty  of  the  4Oth  Regiment  was  sent  to  take 
command  so  that  fully  four  hundred  and  fifty 


252  THE  EUREKA    STOCKADE. 

police  and  soldiers  were  on  the  field.  To  take 
the  places  of  the  soldiers  thus  withdrawn  from 
Melbourne  the  Electra  landed  marines  and  blue 
jackets  to  guard  the  gaol,  and  Latrobe  appealed  to 
Sydney  and  Hobart  for  reinforcements.  In  both 
cases,  men  were  promptly  despatched  to  his  aid,  but 
as  by  the  time  they  arrived  the  diggers  and  not  the 
Government  ruled  the  colony,  they  had  but  little  to 
do.  A  meeting  was  held  in  Melbourne,  at  which  the 
Governor  was  grimly  congratulated  on  his  surrender, 
and  affairs  lapsed  into  the  ominous  tranquillity  which 
preceded  a  more  violent  storm.  Latrobe  had  long 
come  to  the  conclusion  that  he  was  unsuccessful. 
Although  he  had  bravely  done  his  best,  he  was  not 
strong  nor  determined  enough  for  the  difficult  position 
which  he  occupied  ;  and  when  permission  to  retire 
from  the  Government  was  granted,  he  gladly  left  a 
charge  which  was  beset  with  financial  and  revo- 
lutionary difficulties. 

Sir  Charles  Hotham,  a  distinguished  officer,  was 
appointed  to  succeed  him,  and  arrived  in  the  colony 
in  June,  1854. 

There  were  many  matters  requiring  Hotham's 
immediate  attention.  The  financial  position  was 
critical.  The  estimates  of  expenditure  for  the  year 
exceeded  the  anticipated  revenue  by  a  third,  and 
already  there  was  a  deficit  of  over  ;£r,ooo,ooo.  Even 
the  estimate  of  revenue  showed  no  likelihood  of  being 
realised,  unless  great  reforms  were  introduced.  In  all 
the  public  departments,  the  most  scandalous  waste 
and  mismanagement  was  going  on,  and  although 
there  were  fully  60,000  men  at  the  diggings,  only 


THE   EUREKA    HOTEL   INCIDENT.  253 

14,000  licenses  had  been  taken  out  for  June.  In  July 
the  Chief  Commissioner  was  directed  to  pay  more 
attention  to  the  collection  of  the  fees,  and  a  sub- 
stantial increase  took  place,  but  the  sum  obtained  was 
still  under  one-third  of  what  might  reasonably  have 
been  expected.  In  September,  Hotham  urged  the 
Commissioner  to  make  a  further  effort,  and  ordered 
that  the  Assistant  Commissioner  should  twice  a  week 
"  search  for  unlicensed  miners  "  ;  and  he  himself  made 
a  tour  of  the  gold-fields  to  see  with  his  own  eyes  the 
people  and  the  officials  with  whom  he  had  to  deal. 
Wherever  he  went  he  was  enthusiastically  received, 
but  hardly  had  he  returned  to  Melbourne  when  a 
drunken  brawl  produced  the  outbreak  which  had 
been  hovering  on  the  horizon  for  years. 

A  miner  named  James  Scobie  fell  out  in  the  early 
hours  of  the  morning  of  the  6th  of  October  with 
one  Bently,  a  Tasmanian  ex-convict,  who  kept  a 
disreputable  publichouse  at  Ballaarat,  known  as 
the  Eureka  Hotel.  In  a  scrimmage  Scobie  was 
killed.  Bently,  his  wife,  and  a  man  named  Farrell 
were  arrested  and  tried  before  the  local  bench  of 
magistrates,  of  which  Mr.  Dewes  was  the  chairman. 
They  were  acquitted,  although  the  evidence  against 
some  of  them  was  strong,  and  the  apparent  perversion 
of  justice  aroused  a  tumult  in  which  the  friends  of 
Scobie  swore  that  they  would  themselves  punish 
Bently  for  the  murder  since  the  law  courts  were 
corrupt.  On  the  i/th  of  October,  thousands  of  in- 
furiated men  surrounded  the  Eureka  Hotel,  which 
was  quickly  pillaged  and  burnt  to  the  ground.  The 
inmates  narrowly  escaped  destruction,  and  were  only 


254  THE  EUREKA   STOCKADE. 

saved  from  the  vengeance  of  the  mob  by  the 
military  and  police.  Hotham  saw  that  something 
must  be  done  at  once  to  allay  the  irritation,  and 
offered  a  reward  for  the  capture  of  Scobie's  murderers, 
and  appointed  a  commissioner  to  inquire  into  the 
charges  against  Dewes.  Bently  and  two  other  men 
were  again  arrested,  and  this  time  convicted  and 
heavily  sentenced  ;  and  three  of  the  rioters  at  Bently's 
Hotel  also  suffered  short  terms  of  imprisonment  for 
their  share  in  the  riot.  Hotham  remembered  La- 
trobe's  experience  at  Bendigo,  and  determined  to 
make  preparations  for  the  worst,  as  in  the  present 
temper  of  the  miners  it  was  difficult  to  foretell  how 
serious  the  worst  might  be.  By  October  2ist,  430 
military  and  police  had  been  collected  at  Ballaarat, 
under  Captain  J.  W.  Thomas  of  the  4Oth  Regiment, 
who  was  instructed  to  enforce  the  law  "  when  called 
upon  to  do  so,  without  regard  to  the  consequences 
which  might  ensue."  At  the  diggings  the  storm  was 
gathering  rapidly.  A  "  Reform  League  "  was  formed, 
and  a  deputation  despatched  to  the  Governor  to 
"  demand  "  the  release  of  the  three  imprisoned  rioters. 
But  Hotham  was  not  so  pliable  as  Latrobe,  and  the 
menace  implied  in  "  demand "  had  no  effect  upon 
him. 

A  commission  had  already  been  appointed  to 
make  full  inquiry  into  the  administration  of  the 
gold-fields,  and  Hotham  referred  the  miners'  delegates 
to  that  body  promising  to  give  effect  to  its  recom- 
mendations. In  other  matters  brought  before  him 
he  expressed  a  desire  to  meet  the  views  of  the  mining 
population,  so  far  as  it  was  legally  possible  for  him 


MEETING    ON  BAKERY  HILL.  255 

to  do  so,  but  he  was  firm  in  his  determination  to 
refuse  any  favours  which  were  sought  with  threats. 
The  delegates  returned  to  those  who  sent  them- with 
the  Governor's  reply,  but  the  motley  crew  who  had 
become  aware  of  their  strength  at  the  Bendigo 
trouble  in  the  previous  year  were  intolerant  of 
control,  and  resented  the  firmness  and  strength  so 
unexpectedly  shown  by  the  executive.  Their 
words  and  actions  became  more  violent.  On  the 
28th  of  November  a  detachment  of  the  I2th  Regi- 
ment, when  entering  Ballaarat,  was  hustled,  and  a 
baggage  waggon  overturned,  injuring  a  drummer- 
boy,  and  the  next  day  a  huge  meeting  was  held  on 
Bakery  Hill.  Open  revolt  against  the  authorities 
was  decided  upon  ;  a  flag  was  hoisted  and  a  bonfire 
made  of  licenses.  Hotham  was  in  constant  com- 
munication with  Thomas,  and  messages  in  cypher 
passed  rapidly  from  one  to  the  other.  Open  de- 
fiance of  the  law  could  not  be  tolerated,  and  a 
crisis  was  inevitable.  Hotham  therefore  directed 
that  the  licenses  should  be  inspected  as  usual,  and 
on  the  3Oth  of  November  a  commissioner  with  a 
police  escort  set  out  to  perform  the  duty.  They 
were  received  with  showers  of  stones,  and  even 
when  reinforced  were  unable  to  quell  the  disorder,  so 
that  the  Riot  Act  was  read  and  the  military  called 
to  disperse  the  miners,  several  of  whom  were  taken 
prisoners. 

The  insurrectionary  movement  had  now  assumed 
definite  shape.  It  was  fitly  described  by  the  Gold 
Commissioner  as  "  a  strong  democratic  agitation  by 
an  armed  mob,"  and  the  license  was  only  the  occa- 


256  THE   EUREKA   STOCKADE. 

sion,  but  not  the  cause  of  the  outbreak.  On  the 
evening  of  the  3Oth  of  November,  drilling  was 
commenced  by  the  insurgents  on  Bakery  Hill,  and 
Peter  Lalor  was  elected  leader.  Arms,  stores,  horses, 
and  ammunition  were  forcibly  seized,  and  the  roads 
to  Melbourne  and  Geelong  watched  with  a  view  to 
intercepting  reinforcements,  should  they  be  sent  to 
the  authorities.  On  the  1st  of  December  shots  were 
fired  into  Thomas's  camp,  and  it  was  thought  ad- 
visable to  take  special  precautions  at  night  as  an 
attack  was  anticipated  early  in  the  following  morn- 
ing. The  troops  were  therefore  continuously  under 
arms.  At  4  a.m.  a  detachment  was  sent  to  dis- 
perse an  armed  body  which  had  assembled  on 
Bakery  Hill,  but  the  mob  retired  before  the  military. 
Later  in  the  day,  the  camp  was  surrounded  by 
about  two  thousand  armed  men,  who  threatened 
but  eventually  withdrew.  On  the  same  afternoon 
Mr.  Amos,  a  gold  commissioner,  reached  Captain 
Thomas  with  the  tidings  that  an  entrenchment  was 
being  formed  at  Eureka  Hill,  and  that  he  had  been 
attacked  and  plundered.  Reinforcements  had  left 
Melbourne  on  the  ist  of  December,  under  Major- 
General  Nickle,  but  Thomas  saw  that  his  opportunity 
had  now  come,  for  by  attacking  the  Eureka  position 
at  night  or  in  the  very  early  morning  he  would 
probably  find  all  the  insurgents  collected  in  one  spot 
and  so  be  free  of  fears  of  an  assault  on  the  camp  in 
his  absence. 

At  2.30  a.m.  on  Sunday,  the  3rd  of  December, 
1854,  the  soldiers  and  police  were  mustered.  One 
hundred  mounted  men,  seventy  of  whom  were  police, 


ORDER   IS   RESTORED.  257 

and  196  foot  (152  belonging  to  the  I2th  and  4Oth 
Regiments),  comprised  the  attacking  force.  At  3 
a.m.  they  left  the  camp,  and  in  about  thirty  minutes 
reached  the  stockade,  which  had  been  described  by 
Amos.  Their  movements  had,  however,  been  per- 
ceived, for  the  warning  shots  of  sentries  were  heard 
before  they  got  far  from  their  camp.  When  the 
soldiers  were  within  about  a  hundred  and  fifty  yards 
of  the  entrenchment  the  diggers  opened  a  brisk  fire, 
which  was  returned  by  the  military  and  police  as 
they  gradually  closed  on  the  rebels.  The  engage- 
ment was  short  but  sharp.  With  one  rush  the 
soldiers  carried  the  barricade.  The  insurgents'  flag 
was  torn  down,  and  all  who  were  found  within  the 
stockade  were  captured,  while  many  others  were 
intercepted  by  the  mounted  force  as  they  fled  down 
the  hill  or  endeavoured  to  hide  themselves  behind 
anything  which  appeared  to  offer  shelter.  No  fewer 
than  a  hundred  and  twenty  prisoners  were  carried 
back  to  Ballaarat,  but  the  losses  on  both  sides  were 
heavy.  Captain  Wise,  of  the  4Oth  Regiment,  received 
a  fatal  wound,  and  thirteen  more  of  the  military  were 
wounded  most  severely.  On  the  day  after  the  engage- 
ment, Captain  Thomas  wrote,  "  I  have  reason  to 
believe  that  there  were  not  less  than  thirty  killed  on 
the  spot,  and  I  know  that  many  have  since  died  of 
their  wounds."  The  effect  of  the  reverse  on  the 
mining  population  was  immediate.  In  the  same 
despatch  which  is  quoted  above,  it  was  stated  "  that 
the  police  now  patrol  in  small  bodies  the  length  and 
breadth  of  the  Ballaarat  gold-fields  without  threats 
or  insult." 

18 


2$8  THE   EUREKA    STOCKADE. 

The  general  feeling  at  Ballaarat  seems  to  have 
been  one  of  relief.  The  administration  of  the 
ordinary  law  was  bad,  but  the  terrorism  of  the  rebel 
leaders  was  infinitely  worse.  By  this  bold  stroke 
on  the  part  of  the  executive,  the  law  had  been 
vindicated,  but  it  soon  became  apparent  that  the 
sympathies  of  the  bulk  of  the  people  were  with  the 
miners,  and  the  commission  which  Hotham  had 
appointed  reported  that  the  diggers  had  genuine 
cause  for  complaint.  The  same  feeling  which  had 
been  shown  in  Melbourne  in  favour  of  the  rioters  at 
Bently's  Hotel  appeared  again  in  support  of  the 
rebel  leaders,  who  were  now  to  be  tried  for  high 
treason.  Public  meetings  were  held  in  different  parts 
of  the  colony,  at  which  resolutions  exonerating  the 
offenders  from  blame  were  unanimously  passed.  The 
failure  of  the  prosecution  was  a  foregone  conclusion, 
although  the  evidence  in  support  of  the  charge  was 
exceptionally  strong ;  for  no  jury  was  likely  to  con- 
vict in  the  face  of  the  open  threats  which  were  freely 
made  in  the  press  and  elsewhere.  Early  in  1858  the 
case  in  the  criminal  court  commenced.  Thirteen 
prisoners  were  in  the  dock,  but  each  one  was  in  turn 
acquitted  and  received  with  wild  huzzas  by  a  mixed 
crowd  within  and  outside  the  building  as  he  regained 
his  liberty. 

Sir  Charles  Hotham  lost  no  time  in  redeeming  his 
promise  to  the  deputation  from  Ballaarat,  that  he 
would  give  effect  to  the  recommendation  of  the  com- 
mission. An  Act  was  passed  by  the  Council  abolish- 
ing the  license  fee,  and  substituting  "Miner's  Rights," 
the  payment  for  which  was  only  twenty  shillings  per 


ORDER   IS  RESTORED. 


259 


annum.  A  miner's  right  also  carried  with  it  repre- 
sentation in  the  Council,  and  two  members  each 
were  allotted  to  Bendigo,  Ballaarat,  and  Castlemaine, 
and  one  each  to  the  Avoca  and  Oven's  gold-fields,  so 
that,  although  beaten  at  Eureka,  the  miners  got  their 
way,  obtained  freedom  from  taxation,  and  gained 
representation  in  the  Legislature.  In  December,  1854, 
municipal  institutions  had  been  established,  and  a 
large  measure  of  local  government  having  been 
granted  to  the  inhabitants,  the  complaint  of  un- 
popular and  tyrannical  government  was  for  ever 
removed. 


XIX. 


THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 


(1857-1863.) 

THE  troubles  of  Sir  Charles  Hotham  did  not  end 
with  the  capture  of  the  Eureka  stockade,  and  the 
completion  of  the  labours  of  the  gold  commission. 
Years  of  reckless  extravagance  and  incompetent 
financing  had  reduced  the  treasury  to  the  verge  of 
bankruptcy,  and  although  surrounded  with  the  in- 
surrectionary difficulties  which  have  already  been 
described,  the  Governor  did  his  utmost  to  remodel 
the  administration  of  public  finance,  with  the  result 
that  his  labours  were  crowned  with  complete  success. 
The  way  in  which  matters  were  being  conducted  by 
the  existing  ministers  can  be  gathered  from  the  fact 
that  the  estimates  for  1855,  as  presented  to  Hotham 
for  his  approval,  showed  an  anticipated  expenditure 
of  no  less  than  .£2,226,616  in  excess  of  the  probable 
revenue.  The  Governor  personally  examined  the 
various  items,  and  then  appointed  a  committee  of 
finance  by  whose  help  he  was  enabled  to  reduce 

the  estimates  of  expenditure  by  over  two  millions, 

260 


FINANCIAL   DIFFICULTIES.  261 

and  so  to  reorganise  the  whole  system  of  audit  and 
disbursement  that  at  the  end  of  the  year  the  actual 
deficit  was  not  more  than  £5  3,668.  The  revised 
regulations  proved  effective,  and  by  the  end  of  1857 
all  fears  of  impending  national  bankruptcy  were 
removed,  the  surplus  in  the  treasury  standing  at 
no  less  than  ^609,638.  Meanwhile  a  select  com- 
mittee had  been  appointed,  as  in  New  South  Wales, 
to  consider  Sir  John  Pakington's  despatch,  with  regard 
to  the  proposed  new  constitution. 

A  Bill  was  drafted,  providing  for  two  houses,  both 
of  which  were  to  be  elected  by  the  people.  But  one 
was  to  be  founded  on  a  higher  property  qualification, 
and  was  to  be  more  especially  representative  of  those 
persons  who  were  in  possession  of  large  property 
interests  within  the  colony.  The  Upper  House,  or 
Legislative  Council,. was  to  have  a  life  of  ten  years, 
but  in  order  that  the  electors  should  have  a  constant 
opportunity  of  expressing  their  views,  it  was  arranged 
that  every  two  years,  a  certain  number  of  members 
were  to  retire  in  rotation,  and  again  submit  them- 
selves to  election.  The  Legislative  Assembly  was 
intended  to  be  an  entirely  democratic  body,  and  on 
the  suffrage  designated  every  adult  male,  including 
the  unstable  mining  population,  had  a  vote  ;  so  that 
an  absolute  majority  could  always  be  obtained  by 
the  labouring  classes.  There  was  one  very  great 
difference  between  the  powers  of  the  Council  in 
Victoria  and  those  of  similar  bodies  in  the  two 
adjoining  colonies ;  for,  whereas  both  at  Sydney  and 
Adelaide  under  the  terms  of  the  Constitution  Acts 
the  Legislative  Council  and  the  Assembly  had 


262  THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION. 

equal  authority  in  regard  to  Money  Bills,  with  the 
one  exception  that  such  Bills  to  be  introduced  in 
the  Lower  House,  in  Victoria,  on  the  other  hand,  the 
Council  was  given  specifically  the  power  to  reject,  but 
not  to  alter  Bills  involving  expenditure  or  the 
imposition  of  taxation.  This  difference  is  more 
especially  worthy  of  note  as,  before  the  new  Parlia- 
ment had  been  long  in  existence,  it  led  to  some  of 
the  greatest  constitutional  difficulties  which  have 
ever  been  experienced  in  any  of  the  Australian 
colonies.  The  measure  as  drafted  by  the  local 
Council  was  agreed  to  in  England,  and  on  the  23rd 
of  November,  1855,  the  new  Constitution  and  re- 
sponsible government  were  proclaimed. 

The  attainment  of  political  freedom  was  clouded 
by  the  death  of  Sir  Charles  Hotham,  whose  labours 
on  behalf  of  the  colony  had  been  too  much  for  his 
health.  In  1855  he  died  literally  in  harness,  over- 
whelmed by  the  onerous  duties  of  his  responsible 
office.  For  some  months  affairs  were  administered 
by  the  military  commander,  and  then  Sir  Henry 
Barkly  arrived  to  take  charge  of  the  Government 
Being  possessed  of  much  tact  and  ability,  he  was 
able  to  steer  the  new  Parliamentary  bark  through 
its  early  difficulties.  In  the  first  year  of  its  existence 
a  heated  dispute  arose  over  a  suggestion  to  conduct 
the  election  for  both  houses  by  secret  ballot,  and  a 
measure  embodying  this  arrangement  was  eventually 
passed,  though  the  ministry  succumbed  in  the  con- 
flict Before  the  Constitution  had  had  a  fair  trial, 
the  democratic  party  commenced  to  tinker  it ;  in 
1857  the  property  qualification  of  members  of  the 


DEATH  OF  SIR    CHARLES   HOTHAM.  263 

Assembly  was  abolished,  and  universal  suffrage  for 
electors  at  the  same  time  established. 

The  restless  enterprise  of  the  people  showed  itself 
in  other  ways  than  political  conflict,  and  they  entered 
heartily  into  the  work  of  opening  up  the  interior  of 
the  continent. 

In  1860  a  Melbourne  merchant  offered  £1,000  for 
the  furtherance  of  exploration,  and  the  Royal  Society 
of  Victoria  undertook  to  organise  an  expedition  to 
cross  the  continent  A  sum  of  £3,400  was  soon 
subscribed,  and  the  Victorian  Government  granted 
£6,000,  and  brought  twenty-six  camels  from  Arabia 
at  a  cost  of  £3,000  more.  The  most  complete 
arrangements  were  made,  and  Robert  O'Hara  Burke 
was  appointed  leader,  with  G.  J.  Landells  as  second 
in  command.  W.  J.  Wills  was  to  make  scientific 
observations,  and  two  other  scientific  men  and  eleven 
subordinates  were  also  sent,  together  with  twenty- 
eight  horses  to  carry  the  baggage.  On  August  20, 
1860,  the  long  train  of  horses  and  camels  left  Mel- 
bourne amidst  great  enthusiasm,  and  all  went  well 
until  the  Murrumbidgee  was  reached.  Here  Burke 
quarrelled  with  Landells,  and  the  latter,  in  conse- 
quence, resigned.  Wills  was  promoted  to  be  second  in 
command,  and  the  party  then  starting  again,  kept 
together  until  they  came  to  Menindie,  on  the  Darling, 
where  Burke  left  a  man  named  Wright,  with  half  the 
expedition,  and  himself  pushed  on  rapidly,  instructing 
Wright  to  follow  more  leisurely.  With  six  men  and 
half  the  horses  and  camels,  Burke  and  Wills  set  off, 
and  on  the  banks  of  Cooper's  Creek,  finding  fine 
pastures  and  plenty  of  water,  formed  a  depot,  and 


264  'THE   NEW   CONSTITUTION. 

waited  for  Wright,  who,  however,  did  not  appear. 
After  some  time  had  been  lost,  Burke  determined  to 
wait  no  longer,  but  to  make  a  rapid  journey  to  the 
Gulf  of  Carpentaria.  He  therefore  left  four  of  his 
men,  with  six  camels  and  twelve  horses,  at  the  depdt, 
instructing  them  to  remain  for  three  months,  and  if 
he  did  not  return  within  that  time  to  consider  him 
dead  and  return  to  Menindie. 

On  the  1 6th  of  December,  Burke,  Wills,  and  two 
companions  started,  taking  with  them  six  camels  and 
one  horse,  which  carried  provisions  for  three  months. 
After  following  Cooper's  Creek  for  some  way,  they 
struck  off  to  the  north,  till  they  came  to  Eyre  Creek, 
but  soon  rinding  that  it  turned  eastward,  they  left  its 
banks  and  marched  due  north,  keeping  along  the 
i4<Dth  meridian.  The  country  was  covered  with 
forests  of  boxwood,  alternating  with  rich  and  well- 
watered  plains,  and  after  a  few  weeks  they  came 
upon  a  fine  stream,  running  north,  the  Flinders, 
which  entered  a  large  river,  on  whose  banks  was 
most  luxuriant  tropical  vegetation.  Burke  now 
hurried  forward  so  fast  that  one  by  one  the  camels 
sank  exhausted,  and  leaving  the  two  men  to  look 
after  them,  Burke  and  Wills  set  out  by  themselves 
on  foot,  and  walked  till  they  reached  the  shores  of 
the  Gulf  of  Carpentaria.  Their  little  store  of  pro- 
visions was  exhausted  before  they  regained  their 
friends,  but  they  found  the  horses  and  camels  greatly 
improved  by  their  rest,  and  ready  to  move  south- 
wards. But  the  heat  and  exertion  had  told  severely 
on  the  constitutions  of  all.  Towards  the  end  of  March 
their  provisions  began  to  fail  ;  a  camel  was  then  shot 


'BURKE   AND    WILLS  EXPEDITION.  265 

and  its  flesh  dried,  but  in  a  month  this  too  was  gone, 
and  the  horse  was  killed.  One  of  the  men  died  a 
day  or  two  after,  and  the  remaining  three  were 
almost  broken  down.  Four  months  and  a  half  after 
leaving  the  depot  they  reached  it  again,  but  it  was 
still  deserted,  though  they  found  a  notice  stating  that 
their  friends  had  left  that  same  morning.  The  word 
"  dig  "  was  cut  on  a  neighbouring  tree,  and  buried 
beneath  it  they  discovered  a  small  supply  of  pro- 
visions. The  three  deserted  wanderers  rested  for  a 
couple  of  days,  and  then  started  for  Adelaide,  because 
at  Mount  Hopeless,  where  Eyre  had  turned  back  in 
1840,  there  was  now  a  large  sheep  station,  and  it  was 
thought  that  it  could  not  be  more  than  one  hundred 
and  fifty  miles  distant.  Wills  opposed  this  plan,  but 
Burke  prevailed,  and  they  set  out  for  Mount  Hopeless. 
Till  it  was  lost  in  marshy  thickets,  they  followed 
Cooper's  Creek,  and  then  they  had  to  shoot  their  last 
camel  and  dry  its  flesh,  while  they  took  a  short  rest. 
They  then  turned  southwards,  but  when  within  fifty 
miles  of  Mount  Hopeless  they  gave  in,  and  turned  to 
go  back.  After  a  weary  journey  they  once  more 
reached  the  banks  of  Cooper's  Creek,  and  Burke  set 
out  to  seek  some  natives,  who,  when  found,  received 
him  kindly,  and  showed  him  how  to  gather  the  seeds 
from  a  kind  of  grass  called  Nardoo.  But  it  made 
them  sick,  and  failed  to  nourish  them.  Whilst  they 
were  thus  camped  on  Cooper's  Creek,  below  the 
depot,  the  rest  of  the  expedition  returned  to  seek 
them,  for  instead  of  following  closely  on  Burke, 
Wright  had  remained  at  Menindie  for  over  three 
months,  and  the  party  from  the  depot  was  halfway 


266  THE   NEW   CONSTITUTION. 

back  to  the  Darling  before  it  met  him.  Again  they 
just  missed  obtaining  help,  for  finding  no  signs  of 
Burke  and  Wills  at  the  depot,  and  concluding  that 
they  had  perished,  their  friends  hastened  homewards. 
Shortly  after  they  had  left,  Wills  set  out  by  himself 
for  the  depot,  on  the  chance  of  help  having  arrived, 
but  upon  reaching  it  he  found  it  was  still  deserted  ; 
he  therefore  turned  back  to  rejoin  his  companions. 
He  was  rapidly  dying  of  hunger  when  he  met  some 
natives,  who  received  him  in  a  friendly  manner,  helped 
him  to  their  camp,  and  gave  him  food.  For  four  days 
he  rested  with  them,  and  then  started  once  more  to 
fetch  his  friends.  The  journey  was  necessarily  very 
slow,  and  when  the  three  men  returned  the  blacks' 
camp  was  deserted.  They  staggered  on  a  little  further, 
and  then,  as  Wills  was  completely  broken  down,  they 
left  him  in  a  hut,  and  placing  near  him  enough  Nardoo 
to  last  eight  days,  started  off  again  in  quest  of  the 
natives.  On  the  first  day  they  travelled  a  fair  dis- 
tance, but  early  on  the  second  Burke  gave  in.  He 
prayed  his  companion  not  to  leave  him  till  he  was 
dead,  for  he  felt  he  could  live  no  longer.  A  few 
hours  after  dawn  on  the  following  day,  Burke  died. 
The  only  survivor  wandered  on,  and  coming  across 
an  abandoned  native  camp,  found  a  bag  of  Nardoo 
which  would  feed  him  about  a  fortnight,  and  with 
this  prize  he  hurried  back  to  the  hut  where  he  had 
left  Wills.  But  the  life  of  his  friend  was  already 
ended,  and  once  again  he  set  out  and  found  a 
tribe  who  were  hospitable  and  permitted  him  to 
stay  with  them.  When  the  rest  of  the  expedition 
returned  to  Victoria  with  the  news  that  Burke  and 


DEATH  OF  BURKE  AND    WILLS.  267 

Wills  were  lost,  in  all  the  colonies  parties  were 
organised  to  go  in  search  of  the  explorers.  The 
Royal  Society  of  Victoria  equipped  a  small  party, 
under  A.  W.  Howitt,  to  examine  the  banks  of 
Cooper's  Creek,  and  from  Queensland  an  expedition 
was  sent  to  the  Gulf  of  Carpentaria  by  sea,  and 
another  from  Rockhampton  to  the  Gulf  of  Carpentaria 
overland,  while  from  South  Australia  a  party  was 
despatched  from  the  direction  of  Lake  Torrens,  and 
thence  to  Cooper's  Creek.  At  length  the  Victorian 
party,  after  tracing  the  course  of  Cooper's  Creek 
down-stream  from  the  depot,  came  across  tracks  of 
camels,  and  before  long  some  natives  led  the  way  to 
a  camp  where  the  only  survivor  was  found,  but  so 
weak  that  he  could  scarcely  speak.  The  blacks  were 
rewarded  for  their  kindness  with  gifts  of  looking- 
glasses,  gay  pieces  of  ribbon,  and  other  articles,  and 
the  search  party  returned  homewards.  Later  on 
the  Victorian  Government  sent  an  expedition  to 
bring  the  bodies  of  Burke  and  Wills  to  Melbourne, 
where  they  were  accorded  a  public  funeral. 


XX. 


UNDER    RESPONSIBLE    GOVERNMENT. 

(1863-1893.) 

IN  1863  Sir  Henry  Barkly  retired,  and  his  place 
was  filled  by  Sir  Charles  Darling,  who,  on  his  arrival, 
found  the  country  in  a  very  unsettled  condition,  and 
ripe  for  disorder.  The  crowds  of  people  who  had 
been  attracted  by  the  diggings  were  still  nominally 
engaged  in  the  search  for  gold,  but  by  this  time  most 
of  the  alluvial  workings  had  been  exhausted,  and  the 
golden  treasure  could  only  be  won  from  the  quartz 
reefs  after  severe  toil  with  the  aid  of  expensive 
appliances. 

Those  of  the  new-comers,  therefore,  who  had  a 
knowledge  of  other  trades  began  to  look  about  them 
for  suitable  employment,  and  amongst  the  artisans, 
who  were  seeking  some  outlet  for  their  knowledge 
and  energies,  the  idea  became  popular  that  if  once 
the  importation  of  English  and  foreign-made  goods 
were  to  be  checked,  the  demands  of  the  inhabitants 
of  the  colony  would  soon  create  the  local  manufacture 
of  all  sorts  of  articles  with  it,  and  a  profitable  market 

for  the  labour  of  all  who  desired  to  quit  the  diggings. 

268 


SIR    CHARLES   DARLING.  269 

In  other  words,  a  protective  policy  was  advocated  by 
the  unemployed,  and  there  were  plenty  of  persons  in 
the  Lower  House  who  were  easily  convinced  by  any 
suggestions  offered  by  their  constituents.  A  Bill  was 
consequently  introduced  by  the  Ministry  of  Mr. 
McCulloch,  imposing  heavy  duties  on  all  articles  which 
it  was  thought  could  be  made  on  the  spot,  and  passed 
by  the  Assembly  by  a  considerable  majority.  But 
when  it  came  before  the  Upper  Chamber  it  was  un- 
ceremoniously rejected.  The  Ministry  were  indignant, 
and  the  relations  between  the  two  houses  became 
anything  but  cordial.  Still  the  course  taken  by  the 
Council  had  been  entirely  constitutional,  and  the 
Assembly  had  no  legal  remedy  or  justifiable  cause  of 
complaint ;  but  Mr.  McCulloch  was  not  to  be  beaten. 
When  the  Appropriation  Act  was  prepared,  the  whole 
of  the  Customs  Duties  Bill  was  incorporated  in  it, 
and  again  passed  by  the  Legislative  Assembly,  and 
the  Council  were  thus  placed  on  the  horns  of  a 
dilemma.  By  the  special  provision  of  the  Constitution 
Act,  they  had  no  power  to  amend  Money  Bills,  but  if 
they  rejected  the  Appropriation  Act  as  it  stood,  it 
would  mean  that  the  Government  would  be  utterly 
deprived  of  funds  to  meet  the  ordinary  current 
expenses  of  administration.  After  seriously  con- 
sidering which  was  the  better  course  to  take,  it  was 
determined  to  refuse  to  be  tricked  in  this  way,  and 
the  Appropriation  Act,  with  its  obnoxious  addition, 
was  rejected. 

The  whole  city  was  at  once  thrown  into  a  ferment, 
and  the  Government  began  to  collect  customs  duties 
without  waiting  for  the  sanction  of  the  Upper  House. 


2'/0  UNDER   RESPONSIBLE   GOVERNMENT. 

This  course  was  pronounced  illegal  when  an  appeal 
was  made  to  the  Law  Courts,  and  a  dissolution  followed. 
In  the  new  Assembly  the  number  of  members  in 
favour  of  protection  was  materially  increased,  and 
the  Duties  Bill  was  again  passed  and  forwarded  to 
the  Council,  but  only  to  again  meet  with  the  same 
fate  which  it  had  previously  suffered.  The  Ministry, 
therefore,  resigned.  Meanwhile,  the  absence  of  any 
Appropriation  Act  was  causing  much  hardship  and 
discomfort.  Public  servants  could  not  receive  their 
salaries,  and  public  creditors  of  all  sorts  had  to  do 
without  their  money.  But  the  Council  showed  no 
signs  of  yielding,  and  cast  the  responsibility  on  the 
Government,  which  in  its  turn  vilified  the  Council. 
But  the  same  ingenuity  which  had  suggested  the 
expedient  of  tacking  the  Customs  Bill  to  the 
Appropriation  Act  suggested  a  way  of  obtaining 
funds  without  parliamentary  sanction.  Application 
was  made  to  the  Bank  by  the  Government  for  an 
advance  with  which  to  pay  the  public  servants,  and 
after  some  difficulty  ^"40,000  was  obtained  and 
promptly  handed  to  the  various  creditors.  No  sooner 
had  the  money  been  spent  than  the  Bank  demanded 
its  return,  and  at  once  brought  an  action  against  the 
Government  to  recover  the  amount.  No  defence  was 
offered,  and  a  verdict  was  given  in  favour  of  the  Bank, 
whereupon  the  treasurer  was  enabled  legally  to  pay 
money  from  the  public  coffers  to  meet  the  judgment 
of  the  Supreme  Court.  The  same  trick  was  resorted 
to  over  and  over  again,  and  Darling  acquiesced  in  the 
proceedings,  or,  at  any  rate,  did  nothing  to  stop  it. 
This  contrivance  reduced  Parliamentary  government 


THE   CUSTOMS   BILL.  271 

to  a  farce,  and  the  Council,  which  had  some  sense  of 
the  dignity  of  Parliament,  seeing  that  they  were  being 
beaten,  suggested  a  conference,  and  eventually  passed 
the  Appropriation  Act  and  the  Customs  Duties  Bill 
separately. 

The  Imperial  Government  were  displeased  with 
Darling's  action,  and  pointed  out  to  him  that  he 
should  have  taken  steps  to  protect  the  Constitution 
from  this  burlesque  ;  he  was  summarily  recalled,  his 
place  being  filled  by  the  Right  Honourable  F.  H.  T. 
Manners-Sutton.  For  a  moment  there  was  a  lull  in 
the  conflict,  and  it  seemed  as  if  there  might  be  some 
chance  of  parliamentary  government  proceeding  in  a 
fairly  orderly  manner,  on  constitutional  lines.  But 
the  fighting  instinct  having  once  been  aroused  it  was 
hard  to  allay  it,  and  out  of  the  old  feud  a  new  one 
sprang.  McCulloch  brought  forward  a  proposition  to 
vote  ^20,000  to  Lady  Darling  to  compensate  her 
husband  for  his  loss  of  office,  and  the  censure  which 
had  been  passed  upon  him  by  the  Secretary  of  State. 
The  Assembly  readily  agreeing  to  this  arrangement, 
the  money  was  duly  voted.  The  Council  thought  that 
Darling  had  only  met  with  his  deserts,  and  refused 
absolutely  to  pass  the  Bill  when  it  came  before  them. 
Again  the  obnoxious  vote  was  tacked  to  the  Appro- 
priation Act,  and  again  the  Appropriation  Act  was 
thrown  out  by  the  Council.  The  new  governor  would 
not  permit  the  tactics  which  had  been  winked  at  by 
Darling,  and  the  whole  machinery  of  the  country  was 
brought  to  a  sudden  standstill.  Fortunately  at  the 
critical  moment  the  difficulty  was  solved  by  Darling 
himself,  for  McCulloch  received  a  letter  from  the 


2/2  UNDER    RESPONSIBLE   GOVERNMENT. 

ex -governor,  saying  that  he  had  been  amply  compen- 
sated for  his  loss  of  office  by  the  Imperial  Government, 
and  that  he  could  not  accept  the  money  which  it  was 
proposed  to  vote  to  Lady  Darling.  The  Appropria- 
tion Act  was  therefore  passed  by  the  Council  without 
the  £20,000,  and  the  political  life  of  the  colony 
settled  down  for  some  years,  into  comparative  peace 
and  quietness.  There  were  still  constant  changes  in 
the  ministry,  but  beyond  this  the  only  important 
alteration  in  the  Constitution  was  the  reduction  of  the 
property  qualification  of  both  members  and  electors 
of  the  Upper  Chamber.  Numerous  measures  for  the 
internal  development  of  the  country,  and  for  the 
education  and  general  welfare  of  the  people  were 
passed,  without  serious  friction  between  the  two 
houses. 

But  in  1873,  Sir  James  Ferguson  Bowen  took  office 
as  Governor,  and  was  shortly  confronted  by  a  similar 
difficulty  to  that  which  wrecked  Darling,  and  which 
had  been  so  happily  solved  in  the  time  of  his  imme- 
diate predecessor.  A  Bill  had  been  passed  on  this 
occasion  by  the  Assembly,  granting  a  salary  of  .£300 
per  annum  to  all  members  of  the  two  houses,  the 
principal  object  being  to  enable  any  man,  however 
poor,  to  enter  the  political  arena.  At  this  time  Mr. 
Graham  Berry  was  Premier,  and  when  the  Payment 
of  Members  Bill  was  rejected  by  the  Council  he 
followed  the  course  which  had  been  taken  by  Mc- 
Culloch  ten  years  previously,  and  embodied  it  in  the 
Appropriation  Act  for  the  year.  The  Upper  House 
once  more  asserted  its  privilege,  and  threw  it  out,  and 
once  again  the  country  was  involved  in  a  constitu- 


APPEAL    TO   ENGLAND.  273 

tional  crisis.  The  Government  was  powerless  against 
the  Upper  House,  so  they  vented  their  spleen  'upon 
unoffending  public  officials.  On  Wednesday,  8th  of 
January,  1878,  a  Gazette  notice  appeared,  dismissing 
many  hundreds  of  public  servants,  and  consternation 
was  spread  in  the  Civil  Service  from  the  highest  to 
the  lowest  ranks.  After  a  considerable  interval,  how- 
ever, which  was  occupied  in  mutual  recriminations, 
the  Appropriation  Act,  divested  of  the  amounts  for 
payment  of  members,  was  passed  by  the  Council,  and 
the  mutilated  public  service  was  able  to  breathe 
again.  A  petition  was  made  to  the  Imperial  Govern- 
ment to  help  the  colony  out  of  its  continually  recur- 
ring constitutional  difficulties,  and  representatives 
from  the  Assembly  hastened  to  England  to  attempt 
to  justify  their  action.  The  appeal  was  nevertheless 
fruitless,  for  it  was  pointed  out  that  ample  machinery 
was  then  in  existence  for  the  settlement  of  all  ordinary 
disputes,  and  that  no  intervention  from  outside  could  be 
more  effective  than  ordinary  intelligence  and  modera- 
tion on  the  part  of  the  local  legislature.  The  decision 
of  the  Secretary  of  State  remained  unshaken  by  the 
eloquence  of  Berry,  and  he  asserted  that  the  Imperial 
Parliament  would  never  consent  to  alter  the  consti- 
tution of  Victoria  at  the  request  of  one  house  only. 

Sir  George  Bowen  was  recalled,  and  succeeded  by 
the  Marquis  of  Normanby,  and  parties  in  Parliament 
being  more  equal,  there  were  for  some  years  no 
violent  political  disturbances.  In  1880  a  compromise 
was  arrived  at  on  the  vexed  question  of  the  payment 
of  members,  and  the  Council  passed  a  Bill  giving 
salaries  to  the  Lower  House,  and  throwing  out  a 

19 


274  UNDER   RESPONSIBLE   GOVERNMENT. 

measure  intended  to  confer  the  same  remuneration 
upon  themselves.  During  all  these  years,  although 
the  Parliament  of  the  country  had  spent  much  of  its 
time  in  internal  squabbles,  many  useful  measures 
dealing  both  with  social  and  industrial  questions  had 
found  a  place  in  the  Statute  Book.  The  wonderful 
natural  wealth  of  Victoria  had  caused  enormous 
expansion  in  agricultural  settlement,  and  a  large 
amount  of  both  English  and  local  capital  had  been 
invested  in  undertakings  promoting  manufacture. 
A  progressive  railway  policy  was  followed,  almost 
all  lines  being  constructed  by  the  state  with  funds 
borrowed  in  England,  and  the  colony  is  now  covered 
with  a  network  of  lines  which  is  rather  in  advance 
of  its  real  requirements.  The  sudden  accession  of 
enormous  quantities  of  foreign  money  seeking  invest- 
ment caused  values  to  rise  as  suddenly,  and  Victoria 
entered  upon  a  period  of  extreme  inflation,  which 
produced  the  ordinary  accompaniments  of  reckless 
speculation  and  gross  extravagance.  The  formation 
of  a  coalition  Government  removed  in  a  great 
measure  the  check  of  a  strong  opposition,  and 
although  many  measures  of  popular  utility  were 
passed,  the  Government  augmented  the  general  ten- 
dency to  gamble  by  a  profuse  expenditure  of  public 
money,  especially  upon  the  creation  of  many  heavily 
endowed  local  bodies,  such  as  harbour,  irrigation,  and 
water  trusts.  Apart  from  the  recklessness  of  some 
of  the  financial  operations  of  the  colony,  both  public 
and  private,  the  people  of  Victoria  have  shown  com- 
mendable enterprise  in  the  development  of  the 
wonderful  natural  resources  of  the  country.  When 


INFLOW  OF  CAPITAL.  275 

the  return  from  the  gold-fields  fell  off,  a  great  propor- 
tion of  the  diggers  resumed  their  regular  occupations 
many  became  permanent  settlers,  and  commenced 
the  cultivation  of  the  soil.  The  rich  tracts,  which 
won  for  the  colony  the  name  Australia  Felix,  are 
now  for  the  most  part  utilised  for  tillage  and  stock- 
raising.  Much  has  also  been  done  to  bring  the 
unwatered  portions  of  the  country  into  use  by  means 
of  irrigation,  and  Victoria  claims  the  distinction  of 
having  been  the  first  of  the  Australian  group  to  in- 
stitute a  public  system  of  water  conservation  and 
irrigation  upon  a  large  scale.  The  extensive  works 
undertaken  are  perhaps  somewhat  in  advance  of  the 
present  necessities  of  the  colony.  But  there  can  be 
no  doubt  that  in  the  time  to  come  Victoria,  from  the 
great  fertility  of  its  soil,  the  wealth  of  its  mineral 
deposits,  and  the  energy  and  enterprise  of  its  inhabi- 
tants, will  maintain  a  position  as  one  of  the  greatest 
of  the  Australian  States. 


WESTERN  AUSTRALIA. 
XXI. 

EVENTS   FROM    1826   TO    1874. 

THE  territory  which  now  forms  the  colony  of 
Western  Australia  was  first  occupied  in  1826,  at  the 
time  when  the  scare  of  settlement  by  the  French  was 
at  its  height.  Sir  Ralph  Darling,  who  was  then 
Governor  of  New  South  Wales,  contented  himself 
with  sending  a  small  military  detachment  to  King 
George's  Sound,  and  no  effort  was  made  to  occupy 
the  country  for  pastoral  or  agricultural  purposes.  In 
the  following  year,  however,  Captain  Stirling,  while 
cruising  along  the  western  coast,  was  much  struck 
with  the  beauty  of  a  large  river  which  had  been 
discovered  by  the  Dutch  in  1697,  and  called  Swan 
River  on  account  of  the  number  of  black  swans  which 
covered  its  waters.  Stirling  wrote  an  enthusiastic 
description  of  the  place,  and  as  in  England  at  the 
moment  land-hunger  was  very  prevalent,  the  idea  of 
forming  a  colony  on  entirely  new  principles  in  the 
country  received  considerable  support,  and  was  soon 
put  into  execution.  Captain  Freemantle  was  de- 
spatched with  a  few  men  to  do  the  pioneering  work, 

376 


278  EVENTS  FROM    1826    TO    1874. 

and  Captain  Stirling  followed  with  some  eight  hun- 
dred of  the  intending  settlers.  So  far  all  went  well  ; 
Freemantle,  on  his  arrival,  found  that  the  land 
/  which  had  appeared  so  fair  from  the  sea  was  in  reality 
V  little  but  a  barren,  sandy  waste,  covered  with  dense 
scrub.  He  could  find  no  harbour  and  no  good  site 
for  a  town,  and  when  Stirling  arrived  at  the  beginning 
of  June,  1829,  practically  nothing  had  been  done. 
For  lack  of  a  better  situation,  the  emigrants  landed 
on  a  bleak  spot  called  Garden  Island,  and  set  to  work 
to  make  temporary  shelters  out  of  anything  which 
came  to  their  hands.  The  misery  of  these  first  few 
months  it  would  be  difficult  to  describe  ;  and  added 
to  discomforts  of  the  new-comers  was  the  hopeless- 
ness of  the  future,  engendered  by  the  gloomy  reports 
of  the  exploring  parties,  which  were  constantly  being 
sent  across  to  the  mainland  to  seek  a  site  on  which  it 
would  be  possible  to  form  a  town.  At  last  a  spot  on 
the  Swan  River,  where  it  broadens  into  large  shallow 
lagoons,  was  decided  upon ;  but  it  was  many  miles  from 
the  sea,  and  the  river  was  useless  for  navigation,  as 
its  mouth  was  blocked  by  a  bar  which  made  it  impos- 
sible for  a  vessel  of  any  size  to  enter.  Freemantle, 
which  was  little  more  than  an  exposed  roadstead,  had 
to  be  used  as  a  port,  and  the  goods  of  the  settlers 
were  landed  on  the  beach  and  then  carted  miles 
across  the  sandy  waste  to  Perth,  as  they  called  the 
proposed  capital. 

The  emigrants  to  Western  Australia  had  been 
attracted  by  an  indiscriminating  desire  to  become 
large  landed  proprietors,  and  the  whole  scheme  of  the 
Colony  was  based  on  the  principle  of  barter  in  land. 


LANDING   AT   GARDEN  ISLAND.  279 

The  Governor  and  officials  were  paid  in  land  ;  land 
was  offered  in  huge  tracts  to  all  who  brought  property 
to  the  country.  The  introduction  of  a  piano  carried 
a  claim  for  so  many  acres  ;  and  the  first  fleet  was 
loaded  with  every  imaginable  article,  a  great  propor- 
tion being  absolutely  useless  to  people  intending  to 
do  pioneering  work  in  a  new  country.  Before  the  end 
of  1830,  about  a  thousand  new  arrivals  had  reached 
the  colony,  in  thirty  ships  loaded  with  "property," 
and  then  began  a  scramble  for  the  promised  estates, 
for  almost  all  held  land  orders.  The  claimants  for 
the  largest  areas  had  first  choice  of  localities  and 
promptly  selected  land  as  near  as  possible  to  the  city, 
so  that  as  the  area  became  lower  the  intending 
farmers  found  their  estates  vanishing  over  a  distant 
horizon.  Blocks  were  granted,  and  marked  off  on  a 
map  which  was  remarkable  on  account  of  its  extreme 
simplicity  ;  for  beyond  the  fact  that,  owing  to  the 
general  run  of  the  coast  line,  it  was  reasonable  to 
suppose  that  land  was  there,  no  one  knew  anything 
about  it,  and  it  might  have  been  an  Eden  or  a  wilder- 
ness. As  a  matter  of  fact  it  was  the  latter,  and  more- 
over it  was  already  inhabited  by  black  natives  who 
were  not  prepared  to  recognise  the  title  granted  by 
the  lavish  Governor  and  generous  officials  in  Perth. 
Under  the  scheme,  for  every  £3  worth  of  goods  intro- 
duced into  the  colony,  forty  acres  were  given,  but  the 
fee  simple  was  not  to  be  had  by  the  grantee  until 
is.  6d.  per  acre  had  been  expended  on  its  improve- 
ment. 

Human  beings,  if  over  ten  years  old,  were  assessed 
at  6s.   each,  and  one   man,  Mr.   Peel,  was   granted 


280  EVENTS   FROM    1826   TO    1874. 

250,000  acres,  with  a  possible  extension  to  one  million 
acres,  at  the  rate  of  two  hundred  for  each  person 
whom  he  brought  out  answering  to  the  above  de- 
scription. This  gentleman  had  a  very  unfortunate 
experience.  He  took  three  hundred  servants  and 
£50,000  worth  of  goods  and  stock  with  him,  intend- 
ing to  follow  agricultural  and  pastoral  pursuits  on  a 
large  scale.  His  calculations  were  upset,  however,  by 
the  quality  of  the  soil,  his  servants  deserted  him,  and 
his  implements  lay  rusting  unused,  while  the  valuable 
live  stock  wandered  off  over  the  vast  estate,  many 
falling  victims  to  a  poisonous  shrub  which  abounded 
in  the  district.  Mr.  Peel  lost  everything ;  but  his 
case,  although  the  amount  at  stake  was  larger,  is 
only  typical  of  what  was  going  on  all  round.  The 
persons  with  smaller  properties  were  no  better  off; 
and  the  more  venturesome,  who  tried  to  reside  on 
their  distant  estates,  met  their  deaths  for  the  most 
part  from  starvation  or  disease,  far  from  their  fellow- 
men,  while  not  a  few  were  sacrificed  to  the  spears  of 
the  native  tribes. 

The  prospects  of  the  colony  could  not  have  been 
much  more  gloomy,  and  all  who  had  the  means 
returned  to  England  or  sought  in  the  other  provinces 
the  fortune  which  there  seemed  no  hope  of  finding  in 
Western  Australia.  Immigration  of  labourers  for- 
tunately ceased  as  soon  as  an  account  of  the  real 
state  of  affairs  reached  England,  and  Governor  Stir- 
ling was  compelled  to  seek  aid  from  the  Secretary  of 
State  for  his  almost  starving  subjects.  Although  no 
convicts  had  been  directly  sent  to  Western  Australia 
previous  to  1843,  and  the  intention  had  been  to  keep 


GLOOMY  PROSPECTS.  28l 

this  settlement  at  any  rate  free  from  the  criminal 
taint,  many  ticket-of-leave  or  freed  men  from  Tas- 
mania found  their  way  to  the  new  colony,  and  pro- 
duced the  same  troubles  with  the  native  inhabitants 
which  darken  the  pages  of  early  Tasmanian  his- 
tory. Acts  of  brutal  cruelty  provoked  barbarous  re- 
taliation, which  was  in  its  turn  punished  by  the  law, 
although  the  white  men, the  original  transgressors,  were 
seldom  called  to  account.  When  Governor  Hutt  suc- 
ceeded Stirling,  in  1838,  the  Government  made  an  effort 
to  improve  the  relations  between  the  aborigines  and  the 
settlers  ;  and  while  persons  committing  outrages  on 
the  natives  were,  if  possible,  severely  treated,  sub- 
stantial remissions  of  purchase  money  for  land  were 
made  to  those  who  for  two  years  continuously  em- 
ployed a  native  in  some  useful  office  about  their 
farms.  Persons  were  also  appointed  to  specially 
guard  the  interests  of  the  black  men,  and  to  try  and 
prevent  collisions  between  the  two  races.  But  the 
humane  efforts  of  the  Governor  were  greatly  crippled 
by  want  of  funds. 

There  is  but  little  to  record  of  the  first  fifty  years 
of  the  history  of  Western  Australia.  Attempts 
were  made  to  induce  settlement  by  exceptional  faci- 
lities for  acquiring  land,  one  of  the  special  features 
of  the  arrangements  being  the  issue  of  leases  of  Crown 
land,  entitling  the  holder  to  cultivate,  and  carry- 
ing a  right  of  pre-emption  at  the  expiration  of  the 
term  of  lease.  The  amount  of  good  land  near  Perth 
was  very  limited,  and  the  hope  of  discovering  better 
pastures,  and  the  great  difficulty  of  getting  away  from 
the  colony  when  once  landed  there,  alone  kept  it 


282  EVENTS  FROM    1826    TO    1874. 

from  being  totally  deserted.  The  first  change  of  im- 
portance occurred  in  1848,  when  a  proposal  was  made 
by  the  English  Government  that  Western  Australia 
should  receive  convicts.  Five  years  previously,  boys 
from  a  penitentiary  had  been  sent  out ;  but  they  were 
not  regarded  as  criminals,  and  their  assignment  was 
called  "  apprenticing."  In  1845,  a  similar  suggestion, 
that  the  tide  of  transportation  should  be  directed  to 
Western  Australia,  had  been  rejected  by  the  in- 
habitants ;  but  three  years  of  hopeless  stagnation  had 
produced  a  change,  and  Earl  Grey's  offer  was,  in  1848, 
readily,  although  not  unanimously,  accepted.  It  was 
hoped  that  the  expenditure  of  Government  money, 
which  a  convict  establishment  and  its  guard  would 
involve,  would  infuse  a  little  life  into  the  drooping 
energies  of  the  settlement ;  while  the  farming  element 
in  the  population  thought  that  some  relief  from  their 
difficulties  might  be  obtained  by  the  use  of  cheap 
convict  labour  on  their  estates.  These  anticipations 
were  to  some  extent  realised,  and  a  market  was  pro- 
vided for  the  pastoral  or  agricultural  produce  of  the 
colonists.  The  slight  advantage  obtained  was,  how- 
ever, dearly  bought,  for  the  colony  soon  became  little 
but  a  gaol,  and  the  freaks  of  the  convicts  caused 
society,  such  as  it  was,  to  be  in  a  continual  state  of 
apprehension.  Industries  gradually  came  into  exis- 
tence,  and  a  trade  in  timber  became  valuable  ;  for  the 
magnificent  jarrah  forests  and  the  sandal  wood  yielded 
a  store  which  was  always  saleable.  Pearls,  lead,  and 
guano  were  also  discovered  ;  but  even  in  the  develop- 
ment of  these  gifts  of  nature  a  lack  of  enterprise  and 
the  want  of  capital  made  the  results  insignificant. 


CAPTAIN  FITZGERALD,  R.N.  283 

In    1845   Governor   Hutt  retired,  and  the  govern- 
ment was  for  twelve  months  administered  by  Colonel 
Clarke,  and,  on  his  death,  for  another  year  by  Colonel 
Irwin.      When,   in    1848,    Captain    Fitzgerald,    R.N., 
arrived  to  take  command,  two  expeditions  were  being 
prepared  to  search  for  new  pastures,  and  the  success 
of  one,  which  found  a  small  plot  of  good  land  near 
Champion  Bay,  raised  the  spirits  of  the  colonists.     So 
great  was  the  excitement,  that  the  Governor  himself 
journeyed   to   see  the  new  prize ;  but  his  trip  was 
marred  by  an  unfortunate  encounter  with  the  natives, 
in  which  some  of  the  aborigines  were  killed.     Imme- 
diately on  the  Governor's  return,  an  expedition  was 
organised   to   settle  at  Champion  Bay,  and  work    a 
lead  mine  which  had  been  found  on  the  Murchison 
River ;  but  Fitzgerald  was  reminded  by  the  Secretary 
of  State  that  the  Imperial  Government  would   bear 
no  expense  on  account  of  any  further  occupation  of 
territory,  and  it  was  only  after  earnest  representations 
that  consent  was  given  to  the  despatch  of  a  small 
military  guard  to  protect   the   pioneers.      The  con- 
dition of  the  main  settlement  at  this  time  may  be 
gathered    from   Fitzgerald's    communication  to  Earl 
Grey  in    connection  with  this  incident.      "  So  great 
was  the  prevalent  despondency  and  depression,"  he 
wrote,    "  that    the   flocks    were    to    a    great    extent 
thrown  out  of  increase  and  prepared   for  the  caul- 
dron, all    classes  of  colonists  were  daily  leaving  as 
opportunities  occurred,  and  were  it  not  for  the  hope 
which  the  discovery  of  this  new  land  diffused,  my 
conviction    is  that  every  flock-owner  in   the  colony 
who  had  it  at  a.11  in  his  power  would   have  boiled 


284  EVENTS  FROM    1826   TO    1874. 

down  his  sheep  and  abandoned  the  colony  for  South 
Australia." 

The  convicts  were  not  a  desirable  element  in  the 
population,  and  the  lax  control  exercised  over  them 
sometimes  led  to  strange  scenes.  Once,  in  1852, 
during  a  race  meeting  at  York,  about  thirty  prisoners, 
armed  with  clubs,  absconded  and  made  their  appear- 
ance on  the  course.  The  magistrates  present  thought 
it  necessary  to  suspend  the  festivities,  and  swear  in 
special  constables  to  look  after  the  visitors,  while  from 
fifty  to  sixty  natives  were  prevailed  upon  to  assist  the 
authorities  by  becoming  temporary  warders.  Never- 
theless, when,  in  the  following  year,  a  rumour  reached 
Western  Australia,  to  the  effect  that  the  English 
Government  contemplated  ceasing  transporting  to 
the  colony,  the  suggestion  aroused  what  Fitzgerald 
described  as  "one  universal  feeling  of  alarm  and 
despair  "  in  the  minds  of  the  settlers.  Public  meet- 
ings to  protest  against  such  a  step  were  largely  at- 
tended at  Perth  and  Freemantle,  and  petitions  in 
favour  of  the  continuance  of  transportation  were 
transmitted  to  the  Secretary  of  State.  Their  prayer 
was  granted,  and  more  convicts  were  poured  into  the 
colony ;  but  when  it  was  hinted  that  if  they  were  so 
glad  to  have  them,  the  inhabitants  could  hardly 
grumble  if  asked  to  pay  something  towards  their 
keep,  an  angry  remonstrance  was  the  answer,  the 
colonists  refusing  to  pay  anything  at  all,  and  claim- 
ing immigration  of  free  settlers  assisted  by  England, 
as  some  compensation  for  the  acceptance  of  the  bond. 
A  compromise  was  effected.  Governors  Kennedy 
and  Hampton  followed  Fitzgerald,  and  Hampton 


EXPLORATIONS.  285 

stayed  at  the  helm  till  1868,  when  transportation  was 
finally  and  completely  abolished,  on  account  of  a 
change  in  the  prison  policy  in  England. 

The  settlers  meanwhile  made  every  effort  to  open 
up  and  colonise  the  vast  territory  of  the  colony.  In 
1873,  Major  Warburton,  with  his  son,  two  white  men, 
and  two  Afghans  to  drive  seventeen  camels,  left 
Alice  Springs,  on  the  South  Australian  Overland 
telegraph  line,  and  after  traversing  terribly  barren 
country,  at  last  reached  the  Oakover  River,  on  the 
north-west  coast.  Towards  the  end  of  the  same 
year,  Giles  started  on  a  similar  journey,  intending  to 
cross  from  the  middle  of  the  telegraph  line  to  Western 
Australia.  But  after  going  half-way,  he  abandoned 
the  idea  and  returned.  Three  years  later  he  renewed 
his  attempt,  and  successfully  accomplished  the  jour- 
ney. In  1874,  John  Forrest,  Government  Surveyor 
of  Western  Australia,  left  Geraldton,  to  the  south  of 
Shark  Bay,  and,  travelling  1,200  miles  almost  due 
east,  reached  the  telegraph  line.  Alexander  Forrest, 
the  Jardine  brothers,  Ernest  Favenc,  Gosse,  and 
Baron  von  Mueller,  have  also  contributed  to  the  ex- 
ploration of  Australia,  and  now  only  a  small  part  of 
South  Australia  and  the  central  portion  of  Western 
Australia  remain  unknown. 


XXII. 


CONSTITUTIONAL  CHANGES. 
(1875-1893.) 

WESTERN  AUSTRALIA  has  passed  through  several 
stages  of  constitutional  development.  Originally  the 
whole  responsibility  rested  with  the  Governor ;  after- 
wards a  small  executive  council  and  a  nominee  legis- 
lature were  created  to  aid  him.  Later,  the  same  sort 
of  arrangement  as  had  for  so  long  existed  in  New 
South  Wales,  came  into  operation — namely,  a  legis- 
lature partly  nominated  and  partly  elected.  This 
system  met  all  ordinary  requirements  for  some  years  ; 
but,  in  1870,  during  the  rule  of  Governor  Weld,  who 
followed  Hampton,  the  Legislative  Council  was  con- 
siderably enlarged.  Signs  of  a  desire  for  representa- 
tive institutions  had  long  been  manifest,  but  up  to 
this  point  the  opinions  of  the  inhabitants  on  the  ques- 
tion had  been  pretty  evenly  divided,  and,  if  anything, 
the  advocates  of  a  change  were  in  a  minority.  When 
Sir  William  Robinson  succeeded  Mr.  Weld,  in  1875, 
the  agitation  for  responsible  government  took  a  more 
active  form,  although  the  wiser  heads  of  the  colony 

still  saw  the  impossibility  of  proper  local  administra- 

286 


SYSTEMS   OF   GOVERNMENT.  287 

tion  in  a  community  consisting  of  about  three  thou- 
sand free  adult  males  and  five  thousand  persons  who 
had  been  at  one  time  or  another  convicted  criminals. 
When,  therefore,  in  1878,  a  resolution  was  moved  in 
the  Legislative  Council,  affirming  that  responsible  in- 
stitutions should  be  immediately  granted  it  was  lost  by 
a  majority  of  thirteen  votes  to  five  ;  but,  nothing 
daunted,  its  advocates  continued  to  keep  the  question 
prominently  before  the  public,  although  it  soon  be- 
came evident  that  the  concession  would  be  made  by 
the  Imperial  Parliament  only  on  the  condition  that 
the  territory  then  known  as  Western  Australia  should 
be  divided,  and  a  comparatively  small  portion  given 
up  to  the  control  of  the  very  limited  population. 
When,  however,  this  determination  became  generally 
known,  the  idea  of  subdividing  the  colony  was  bit- 
terly opposed,  and  for  a  time  the  constitutional  ques- 
tion lost  popular  interest. 

But,  although  temporarily  obscured,  the  ambitions 
of  the  settlers  were  still  alive,  and  it  was  determined 
to  show  the  opponents  of  autonomy  that  the  inhabi- 
tants of  Western  Australia,  if  few  in  numbers,  were 
nevertheless  capable  of  managing  and  developing 
their  huge  estate.  Sir  H.  Ord,  who  had  now  be- 
come Governor,  enthusiastically  supported  the  enter- 
prise of  the  people.  Strenuous  efforts  were  made  to 
construct  public  works,  with  the  object  of  opening  up 
the  country,  and  funds  were  raised  for  the  purpose  by 
the  floating  of  loans  on  the  English  market.  It  was 
found,  however,  to  be  easier  to  devise  large  schemes 
than  to  carry  them  out.  The  field  administration  was 
careless,  and  the  estimates  of  cost  were  loosely  drawn 


288  CONSTITUTIONAL   CHANGES. 

up,  so  that  when  the  time  came  to  pay  for  many  ven- 
tures the  bill  was  much  larger  than  had  been  antici- 
pated. The  result  was  a  deficit  of  about  ^"30,000, 
and  this  financial  failure  produced  a  general  feeling 
of  discontent  amongst  those  who  had  to  contribute  to 
the  revenue,  and  still  further  dimmed  the  prospect 
of  obtaining  responsible  government.  Sir  Henry  Ord 
left  the  colony  while  it  was  in  this  mood,  and  Sir 
William  Robinson  returned  and  entered  upon  a  second 
term  of  office. 

Public  works  were  still  carried  on,  however,  but  as  it 
was  clearly  impossible  for  the  Government  to  under- 
take the  construction  of  a  railway  system  for  the 
whole  colony,  arrangements  were  made  with  an  Eng- 
lish company  to  build  a  line  from  Albany  to  Beverley, 
a  distance  of  about  241  miles,  on  the  land  grant 
system,  and  later  a  similar  concession  was  made  to 
the  Midland  Railway  Company,  whose  track  was  to 
run  from  a  point  on  the  Eastern  Railway,  near  Guild- 
ford,  to  Walkaway,  two  hundred  and  sixty  miles  dis- 
tant, and  then  was  to  join  a  Government  line  running 
to  Geraldton.  In  each  case  the  companies  received 
twelve  thousand  acres  of  land  for  every  mile  of  rail- 
way constructed,  such  property  to  be  selected  within 
forty  miles  of  either  side  of  the  line,  half  the  front- 
tage  to  the  railway  being  reserved  for  the  Government. 
Various  other  lines,  some  belonging  to  the  Govern- 
ment and  some  to  private  individuals,  have  already 
been  made,  and,  considering  its  scanty  and  scattered 
population,  Western  Australia  is  possessed  of  fair 
means  of  internal  communication.  A  telegraph  line 
between  Perth  and  Freemantle  (a  distance  of  about 


THE  ELECTRIC   CABLE.  289 

twelve  miles)  was  constructed  by  a  private  company, 
and  opened  for  the  transmission  of  messages  as  early 
as  1 869  ;  the  line  was  taken  over  by  the  Govern- 
ment two  years  later.  Since  then  telegraphic  com- 
munication has  been  entirely  in  the  hands  of  the 
State,  and  great  progress  has  been  made.  The 
alternative  cable  of  the  Eastern  Extension  Telegraph 
Company  stretches  from  Roebuck  Bay  to  Banjowangi ; 
Western  Australia  is  thus  possessed  of  a  direct 
service  with  Europe. 

The  efforts  to  develop  the  natural  resources  of  the 
colony  had  their  effect.  The  people  of  Western 
Australia  had  shown  that  they  were  capable  of  sound 
progress,  and  when  in  1887  a  resolution  was  again 
brought  forward  in  the  Council  affirming  that  self- 
government  was  desirable,  it  was  passed  by  an  almost 
unanimous  vote,  and  the  Governor  was  requested  to 
take  the  necessary  steps  to  carry  the  matter  to  a  con- 
clusion. But,  as  formerly  there  had  been  differences  of 
opinion  on  the  subject,  it  was  thought  wise,  before  such 
a  fundamental  change  was  made,  that  the  voice  of  the 
inhabitants  should  be  clearly  given.  So  at  the  end 
of  the  following  year  the  Council  was  dissolved,  and 
early  in  1889  a  general  election  took  place,  at  which 
the  principal  question  before  the  constituencies  was 
whether  or  not  the  Imperial  Parliament  should  be 
approached  with  a  view  of  obtaining  for  Western 
Australia  the  benefits  of  autonomy  which  had  so 
long  been  enjoyed  by  the  other  provinces.  The 
change  in  popular  sentiment  was  apparent  directly 
the  new  Council  assembled,  and  resolutions  similar  to 
those  rejected  in  1878,  and  carried  by  a  majority  in 

20 


2gO  CONSTITUTIONAL    CHANGES. 

1887,  were  passed  without  a  single  dissentient  voice. 
In  April  a  Bill  defining  the  new  Constitution  was  pre- 
pared, and  after  but  slight  amendment  was  forwarded 
to  the  Secretary  of  State.  As  opposition  to  the 
transference  of  the  Crown  lands  to  the  Colonial 
Government  was  anticipated,  the  Governor,  Sir 
Frederick  Napier  Broome,  and  two  prominent  settlers 
were  appointed  by  the  Council  to  represent  the  affairs 
of  the  colony  in  England,  and  to  do  their  utmost  to 
steer  the  measure,  on  which  so  much  depended,  safely 
through  the  quicksands  of  the  Imperial  Parliament. 
As  had  been  expected,  clauses  were  introduced  at  an 
early  stage  which  were  highly  distasteful  to  the  West 
Australians,  but  on  reference  of  the  Bill  to  a  select 
committee,  all  the  obnoxious  provisions  were  excised, 
and  full  control  of  their  own  affairs  and  of  the  whole 
of  their  huge  territory  was  vested  in  the  local  legisla- 
ture, which  it  was  proposed  to  create  forthwith.  The 
Act  received  the  royal  assent  on  the  I5th  of  August, 
1890,  greatly  to  the  satisfaction  of  the  whole  of  Aus- 
tralia. The  new  Constitution  differed  in  detail  but 
little  from  the  measures  under  which  the  eastern 
colonies  have  been  governed  since  1855.  An  Upper 
House  was  established,  containing  fifteen  members, 
the  first  holders  to  be  nominated  by  the  Crown,  but 
with  ample  provision  for  making  it  elective  so  soon 
as  the  population  of  the  colony  shall  have  reached 
sixty  thousand.  To  become  a  member,  it  is  neces- 
sary to  possess  a  substantial  property  qualification, 
but  the  qualification  defined  for  the  elector  is  ex- 
tremely low.  Members  are  elected  to  the  Assembly 
on  the  basis  practically  of  manhood  suffrage,  and 


THE  NEW  CONSTITUTION.  2QI 

provision  is  made  for  the  representation  of  Crown 
lessees.  The  new  system  of  government  has  not  yet 
been  sufficiently  long  in  operation  to  make  it  possible 
to  form  an  opinion  as  to  its  utility.  But  there  is 
every  reason  to  believe  that  Western  Australia  will  in 
the  future  make  as  good  use  of  its  plenary  powers 
of  legislation  as  the  other  colonies  have  done. 

From  recent  discoveries  it  would  appear  to  be 
by  no  means  improbable  that  gold  will  be  as  power- 
ful a  factor  in  the  development  of  Western  Aus- 
tralia as  it  has  been  in  most  of  the  other  colonies 
of  the  Australian  group.  The  progress  of  both 
New  South  Wales  and  Victoria  was  slow  and  un- 
certain until  the  news  of  the  discovery  of  gold  was 
noised  abroad.  Then,  and  not  till  then,  did  it  begin 
to  be  realised  what  a  land  of  promise  this  almost 
unknown  country  was,  and  from  that  date  up  to 
the  present  time  the  current  of  immigration,  set  in 
motion  by  the  finding  of  the  precious  metal,  has  con- 
tinued to  flow  steadily  to  Australian  shores.  Until 
quite  recently,  however,  there  seemed  to  be  no  pro- 
spect of  the  same  fortune  awaiting  Western  Australia, 
and  by  many  persons  competent  to  form  an  opinion 
it  was  generally  considered  that  this  portion  of  the 
continent  was  almost  destitute  of  mineral  wealth. 
But  it  has  now  been  pretty  well  proved  that  this  idea 
was  entirely  erroneous.  Mining  and  prospecting  are 
quite  in  their  infancy  in  Western  Australia,  and 
the  industry  has  there,  as  in  most  other  places, 
met  with  many  misfortunes  at  its  commencement. 
Perhaps  the  most  severe  check  to  mining  enter- 
prise followed  the  first  discovery  of  gold  at  Peter- 


2Q2  CONSTITUTIONAL   CHANGES. 

wangy,  for,  as  soon  as  it  became  known  that  gold 
had  been  found,  there  was  a  rush  from  the  other 
colonies  quite  unwarranted  by  the  character  of  the 
discovery.  The  precious  metal  was  never  gained  in 
payable  quantities,  and  the  disappointed  diggers,  find- 
ing nothing,  left  in  disgust.  The  next  venture  was 
little  better,  for,  although  the  assay  of  the  ore  from  the 
Kendinup  field  gave  a  large  return,  the  presence  of  a 
great  quantity  of  arsenical  pyrites  caused  such  a  loss 
both  in  gold  and  mercury,  when  the  ore  was  treated 
on  the  ground,  that  no  satisfactory  return  could  be 
obtained.  After  this  followed  the  rush  to  Kim- 
berley  ;  here  again  the  alluvial  workings  were 
shallow,  so  that  they  were  soon  worked  out,  and 
although  Kimberley  has  now  settled  down  into  a 
reefing  district,  and  some  very  rich  finds  have  been 
made,  confidence  has  not  been  entirely  restored,  and 
Western  Australian  mining  enterprises  are  viewed 
with  suspicion. 

But  further  discoveries  are  continually  being  re- 
ported, and  the  reefs  in  the  neighbourhood  of  the 
Yilgarn  Hills,  which  stretch  away  from  north  to 
south,  indicate  that  gold  extends  for  a  distance  of 
at  least  fifty  miles.  Other  reefs  have  been  found 
at  Peewah,  and  a  little  further  east  the  alluvial 
fields  of  Pilbarra  are  being  worked  with  a  con- 
siderable amount  of  success,  while  the  last  discovery 
is  in  the  vicinity  of  Austin's  Lake,  in  the  Murchison 
district.  The  presence  of  gold  in  Western  Australia 
would  appear  to  be  conclusively  established,  and 
it  would  seem  to  be  deposited  over  a  very  exten- 
sive area.  It  is  not  likely  that  gold  mining  will 


FUTURE   PROSPECTS.  293 

ever  be  the  principal  industry  of  the  country,  for 
at  any  rate  more  than  a  brief  period,  but  those  who 
are  attracted  by  the  prospect  of  an  easily-acquired 
fortune  on  the  gold-fields  readily  turn  their  attention 
to  other  pursuits,  and  to  the  development  of  other  re- 
sources of  the  country,  which  are  of  a  more  perma- 
nent nature.  Western  Australia  has  the  advantage 
of  the  experience  of  the  other  colonies  to  guard  her 
from  the  dangers  invariably  attending  any  sudden 
accession  of  population.  Once  let  the  country  get 
a  fair  start,  and  its  progress  cannot  fail  to  be  rapid, 
for,  besides  its  large  pastoral  resources,  and  belts  of 
good  mineral  country  extending  from  one  end  of  the 
colony  to  the  other,  gold  is  not  the  only  mineral  of 
which  it  is  possessed.  Very  rich  lodes  of  copper  and 
lead  have  already  been  worked  successfully  for  many 
years,  but,  the  price  of  these  metals  having  fallen, 
the  mines  have  temporarily  stopped.  The  Govern- 
ment have  offered,  as  an  inducement  for  the  estab- 
lishment of  lead-smelting  works,  .£10,000  for  the 
first  ten  thousand  tons  of  lead  smelted  in  the  colony. 
A  ready  market  can  be  obtained  for  the  metal 
both  in  China  and  Singapore.  In  addition  to 
the  above  metals  coal  and  tin  have  been  found 
in  considerable  quantities,  and  there  is  every  indi- 
cation that  in  the  near  future,  Western  Australia 
will  take,  as  a  treasure-house  of  mineral  resources, 
a  high  place  among  the  colonies  of  the  Australian 
group. 

Hitherto  this  province  has  certainly  been  a  lag- 
gard amongst  Australian  States,  but  now  that  politi- 
cal freedom  has  been  consummated,  and  its  immense 


294 


CONSTITUTIONAL   CHANGES. 


pastoral,  mineral,  and  agricultural  possibilities  are 
becoming  more  perfectly  appreciated  and  understood, 
the  country  is  certain  soon  to  assume  a  position  more 
in  accordance  with  its  vast  natural  resources. 


I 

SOUTH  AUSTRALIA. 

XXIII. 

EARLY   SETTLEMENT. 
(1829-1840.) 

THE  colony  of  South  Australia  was  founded  in  an 
entirely  different  way,  and  for  totally  different  reasons, 
to  any  of  the  other  provinces,  and  its  origin  and  early 
history  are  of  peculiar  interest.  In  1829  Mr.  Edward 
Gibbon  Wakefield,  who  had  spent  some  years  in  New 
South  Wales,  wrote  a  pamphlet,  which  was  published 
in  London  under  the  title  of  "  A  Letter  from  Sydney." 
The  author  described  graphically  the  conditions  of 
social  intercourse  in  the  penal  settlement,  dwelling 
more  particularly  on  the  absence  of  the  opportunity 
for  refined  enjoyment  and  literary  or  artistic  cul- 
tivation in  a  community  in  which  nearly  all  were 
workers.  How,  he  asked,  could  intellectual  life  flourish 
in  a  country  where  there  were  no  gradations  in  free 
society?  It  was  impossible  for  a  man  of  taste  and 
education  to  farm  his  property  with  the  aid  of  free 
workmen,  for  the  inducements  offered  to  the  labouring 
classes  to  become  themselves  proprietors  were  so 

295 


WAKEFIELrfs  SYSTEM  OF  COLONISATION.     2Q7 

great  that  it  was  unreasonable  to  expect  them  to 
remain  in  service.  For  these  reasons  there  must 
always  be  something  wanting  in  colonial  society 
built  up  upon  the  lines  hitherto  pursued.  Instead  of 
reproducing  a  nation  strong  both  in  its  intellectual 
and  physical  parts — an  extension,  in  fact,  of  the  mother 
country — both  good  masters  and  good  men  would  be 
absent,  and  their  places  would  be  taken  by  an  unsatis- 
factory class  of  peasant  proprietors,  who  would  be 
able  to  do  nothing  to  advance  the  higher  life  of  the 
people,  and  who  would  be  unable,  from  lack  of  capital, 
even  to  make  the  most  of  the  land  which  they  occupied. 
But  Wakefield  did  not  content  himself  with  simply 
pointing  out  the  poor  results  of  existing  methods  of 
colonisation.  He  sought  the  cause  of  failure,  and 
endeavoured  to  construct  a  scheme,  free  from  the  evils 
of  which  he  complained. 

The  essence  of  this  plan  was  that  a  "  sufficient  price  " 
should  be  charged  for  the  land,  which  should  then  be 
parted  with  absolutely  to  the  purchaser,  and  that  the 
supply  of  labourers  by  immigration,  assisted  by  the 
revenue  from  land,  should  be  as  nearly  as  possible 
proportioned  to  the  demand  for  labour  at  each  settle- 
ment ;  so  that  only  possessors  of  capital  should  hold 
the  land,  and  while  capitalists  would  never  suffer  from 
an  urgent  want  of  labourers,  labour  would  never  fail 
to  obtain  well-paid  employment.  There  is  not  space 
here  to  elaborate  the  details  of  Wakefield's  plan,  but 
it  attracted  much  attention,  and  his  theories  were 
enthusiastically  accepted  in  England  by  all  sorts  and 
conditions  of  men.  In  1831  the  first  attempt  was 
made  to  put  the  scheme  into  practice,  and  a  South 


EARLY  SETTLEMENT. 

Australian  association  was  formed  with  the  object,  to 
use  Wakefield's  words,  of  "  substituting  systematic 
colonisation  for  mere  emigration."  The  suitability  of 
the  southern  portion  of  Australia  for  colonisation  had 
been  determined  by  recent  explorations,  and  the 
association  applied  to  the  English  Government  for  a 
charter  granting  them  what  amounted  to  sovereign 
rights  over  the  whole  southern  portion  of  the  conti- 
nent. Objections  were  made  to  the  surrender  of 
legislative  powers  to  an  irresponsible  company,  and, 
although  the  promoters  asked  the  Secretary  of  State 
for  the  Colonies  to  suggest  modifications  in  their 
proposal,  he  declined  to  do  so  on  the  grounds  that  it 
was  their  business,  not  his,  to  formulate  an  acceptable 
scheme. 

Two  years  later  negotiations  on  the  subject  were 
again  commenced,  and  in  August,  1834,  the  English 
Government  passed  a  Bill  empowering  the  Crown  to 
establish  a  province  in  South  Australia,  and  to  appoint 
colonisation  commissioners  to  look  generally  after  the 
affairs  of  the  new  settlement.  Wakefield's  theory  was 
to  be  carried  out,  to  a  certain  extent,  and  the  minimum 
price  of  land  was  fixed  at  I2s. ;  a  price  very  much 
above  that  charged  in  the  other  colonies.  The  com- 
missioners were  authorised  to  borrow  money,  in  anti- 
cipation of  revenue  from  land  sales,  in  order  to  promote 
immigration  of  the  necessary  labourers.  The  Act 
was  a  comprehensive  measure,  and  there  were  other 
provisions  to  meet  the  requirements  of  the  colony  in 
the  future,  such,  for  instance,  as  the  clause  authoris- 
ing the  establishment  of  a  constitution  for  local  self- 
government  in  any  province  containing  fifty  thousand 


FIRST  LANDING   OF  EMIGRANTS.  2gg 

inhabitants.  These  arrangements,  however,  never 
came  into  operation,  and  the  most  important  point 
was  the  formation  and  status  of  the  commission,  and 
the  refusal  of  the  English  Government  to  afford  any 
pecuniary  aid.  If  the  experiment  were  tried,  they 
said,  the  promoters  must  find  the  money.  Colonel 
Torrens,  who  remained  in  England,  as  chairman,  and 
Mr.  Fisher,  Resident  Commissioner  in  Australia,  with 
nine  others,  formed  the  Board,  and  a  governor, 
Captain  Hindmarsh,  R.N.,  and  a  Surveyor-General, 
Colonel  Light,  were  appointed  by  the  Government  to 
guard  the  interests  of  the  Crown.  But  the  duties  of 
Hindmarsh  and  Fisher  were  ill-defined,  and  apparently 
both  were  nominally  entrusted  with  supreme  power  in 
the  control  of  the  colony's  affairs. 

The  preliminary  arrangements  were  soon  completed, 
and  the  pioneer  vessels,  Duke  of  York  and  Lady  Mary 
Pelham>  sailed  in  February,  1836.  After  an  unevent- 
ful voyage  the  ships  arrived  off  the  coast  in  August, 
and  the  emigrants  were  at  once  landed  at  Kangaroo 
Island,  where  a  small  whaling  station  already  existed. 
But  trouble  began  early,  for  when  Colonel  Light  shortly 
afterwards  arrived  in  the  Rapid,  he  was  dissatisfied 
with  the  island  as  a  site  for  the  capital  of  a  settlement, 
and  crossed  to  the  mainland.  Even  then  he  had 
some  difficulty  in  coming  to  a  decision,  and  after  ex- 
amining Port  Lincoln  he  returned  to  Holdfast  Bay, 
and  settled  on  the  spot  where  Adelaide  now  stands. 
The  position  was  admirable  in  some  respects,  but  it 
was  seven  miles  from  the  nearest  harbour,  and  great 
inconvenience  was  experienced  in  landing  the  baggage 
which  the  colonists  had  brought  with  them.  Con- 


300  EARLY  SETTLEMENT. 

flicting  opinions  were  freely  expressed  concerning 
the  proposed  site  for  the  capital,  many  wishing  to  go 
to  Encounter  Bay  ;  but  the  supporters  of  Light  pre- 
vailed, and  the  surveyors  set  to  work  to  mark  out  the 
plan  of  the  future  city.  .Altogether,  in  1836,  nine 
ships  arrived,  carrying  about  five  hundred  persons, 
and  amongst  the  number  Governor  Hindmarsh.  Faith 
in  the  future  prospects  of  the  settlement  was  strong, 
and  after  the  Governor  had  read  the  orders  in  Council 
founding  the  colony,  in  a  tent  pitched  in  Glenelg 
Plains,  a  banquet  was  held  to  commemorate  the 
event,  and  for  the  moment  the  cause  of  dissension  was 
forgotten. 

But  those  who  disagreed  with  Light's  choice  re- 
sumed active  opposition,  as  soon  as  they  discovered 
they  enjoyed  the  sympathy  of  the  Governor.  A 
public  meeting  was  held,  at  which  Light  was  supported 
by  Fisher,  the  Resident  Commissioner,  and  a  majority 
of  the  colonists  ;  but  so  much  friction  had  been  caused 
that  the  administrative  arrangement  which,  under  the 
most  favourable  conditions,  would  have  been  ano- 
malous, became  utterly  unworkable.  Nevertheless, 
by  March,  1837,  the  survey  of  the  capital  had  been 
completed,  and  the  first  sales  of  allotments  took  place. 
The  minimum  price  for  land  had  been  fixed  at  I2s. 
per  acre  to  commence  with,  with  the  intention  of 
raising  it  presently  to  £i,  and  at  the  first  auction 
town-lots  sold  for  from  .£3  to  £13  each — a  fairly 
satisfactory  figure.  But  the  colonists,  instead  of 
taking  up  country  lands,  clung  to  the  skeleton  city, 
and  amused  themselves  by  joining  in  the  wrangle 
between  Hindmarsh  and  Fisher,  which  was  daily 


HINDMARSH  AND   FISHER.  30! 

becoming  more  bitter.  The  utter  absence  of  effort  on 
the  part  of  the  pioneers  to  obtain  anything  from  the 
soil  is  an  extraordinary  circumstance  of  the  first  few 
years  of  the  colony's  existence.  The  persons  pos- 
sessed of  capital  commenced  to  speculate  in  town 
allotments,  which  it  was  supposed  would  rapidly  rise 
in  value  as  population  increased,  and  labourers  who 
had  been  brought  out  with  the  idea  that  plenty  of 
agricultural  work  would  be  readily  obtained  had  to 
live  as  best  they  could,  being  unable  to  discover  any 
men  of  means  to  employ  them.  The  gambling  in 
city  property  became  wilder  and  wilder,  while  most  of 
the  money  brought  by  the  intending  settlers  was  paid 
away  for  food  and  clothing  instead  of  the  purchase 
of  estates.  Matters  looked  serious ;  the  Governor  and 
Commissioner  were  useless  as  far  as  directing  the 
energies  of  the  people  went,  for  whatever  was  done  by 
the  one,  the  other  offered  opposition  to.  At  length 
news  of  the  unsatisfactory  condition  of  things  reached 
England,  with  the  result  that  Hindmarsh  was  sum- 
marily recalled,  and  Fisher  dismissed,  while  Colonel 
Gawler  was  sent  out  to  take  control,  combining  in  his 
own  person  the  two  vacant  offices.  In  a  despatch  he 
describes  the  state  of  things  which  he  found  on  his 
arrival.  All  the  means  of  the  colonists,  he  alleged, 
were  vanishing  in  payment  "  for  the  necessaries  of 
life."  There  were  "  scarcely  any  settlers  in  the  coun- 
try ;  no  tillage  ;  very  little  sheep  or  cattle  pasturing  ; 
the  two  landing-places  of  the  most  indifferent  descrip- 
tion ;  the  population  shut  up  in  Adelaide,  existing 
principally  upon  the  unhealthy  and  uncertain  profits 
of  land-jobbing."  The  public  finances  were  in  a  hope- 


302  EARLY   SETTLEMENT. 

less  muddle,  and  the  expenditure  authorised  for  the 
whole  year,  namely,  .£12,000,  had  all  been  drawn  and 
spent  in  the  first  quarter.     Each  day  the  position  was 
becoming  more  grave,  for  a  poorer  class  of  immigrants 
was   arriving,   under    the    expectation   of  obtaining 
work  from   those  who  had  already  been  some  time 
in  the  colony  and  were  now  practically  without  the 
means   of  sustenance.     Prices   rose  rapidly.     Bread- 
stuffs  increased  in  a  short  time  from  £20  to  £80  per 
ton,  and  a  strong  desire  to  leave  the  miserable  place 
was  evinced  by  all  who  had  not  already  squandered 
the    money   which   might    have    taken    them    away. 
Gawler  had  to  face  a  difficult  situation,  and  his  first 
care  was  for  the  starving  crowds  who  had  from  no 
fault  of  their  own  been  placed  in  this  helpless  position. 
If  the  private  landowners   could  not   or  would   not 
employ  them,  the  Government  must,  in  order  to  save 
them  from  an  otherwise  inevitable  fate.     Gawler  at 
once  commenced  extensive  public  works.    He  managed 
to  pay  the  destitute  labourers,  partly  out  of  his  own 
pocket,  and  partly  by  discounting  bills  on  the  English 
Treasury,  but,  apparently,  on  the  principle  that  suffi- 
cient unto  the  day  is  the  evil  thereof,  he  quite  dis- 
regarded the  fact  that  there  were  no  funds  available 
to  meet  the  cost  of  the  work.    The  immediate  pressure 
was  removed,  and  the  hungry  mouths  filled  by  the 
provisions    which    Gawler   imported    on   the   public 
account ;  but  his  efforts  met  with  no  response  from  the 
more  wealthy  colonists,  and  the  Government,  having 
once  accepted  the  responsibility  of  providing  work  for 
the  unemployed,  was  unable  to  stop  the  expenditure 
until  the  demand  for  labour  on  the  part  of  the  public 


RELIEF  OF   UNEMPLOYED.  303 

relieved  it  of  its  burthen.  Doubtless  Gawler  expected 
that,  if  the  immediate  crisis  were  safely  passed, 
private  enterprise  would  at  length  come  forward  to 
develop  the  natural  resources  of  the  country,  and  he 
is  more  to  be  pitied  than  blamed  for  the  disastrous 
consequences  of  his  action.  When  he  arrived  he  was 
in  a  dilemma  from  which  there  was  no  escape. 

The  public  works  which  were  undertaken  were,  for 
the  most  part,  valuable  of  their  kind.  Extensive 
wharves  and  warehouses  were  erected  at  the  port,  in 
addition  to  a  custom  house,  and  a  good  road  was 
laid  to  the  city.  Other  public  buildings,  including  an 
expensive  residence  for  the  Governor,  were  put  up,  but 
still  the  crowd  of  labourers  which  clamoured  for  work 
showed  no  signs  of  decreasing.  Gawler  had  exhausted 
his  own  fortune  in  the  payment  of  wages,  and  no 
revenue  could  be  obtained  from  the  colony ;  so  the 
only  course  open  was  to  draw  bills  on  the  English 
Treasury  for  larger  and  larger  sums.  The  first  few 
drafts  were  honoured  readily  enough,  for  the  English 
Government  recognised  the  difficulty  of  Gawler's 
position,  and  the  sore  straits  in  which  he  had  found 
the  colony  ;  but  when  the  bills  became  more  frequent, 
and  amounts  higher,  Gawler  was  informed  that  no 
more  drafts  would  be  paid.  Already,  however,  he 
had  incurred  liabilities  amounting  to  nearly  ^"400,000, 
and  as  the  warning  from  the  English  Government 
was  emphasised  by  the  refusal  to  pay  £69,000  worth 
of  bills  on  presentation,  matters  were  abruptly  brought 
to  a  crisis.  Speculation  in  land  was  immediately  con- 
verted into  an  universal  desire  to  sell  at  any  price, 
and  the  marketable  value  of  real  estate  fell  lower  and 


304  EARLY   SETTLEMENT. 

lower.  A  general  exodus  of  all  who  could  afford  to 
go  away  followed,  but  the  supply  of  provisions  had 
ceased  with  the  dishonour  of  the  Governor's  bills,  and 
in  spite  of  the  reduction  in  numbers,  the  community 
was  stared  in  the  face  by  starvation. 

But  such  a  state  of  things  inevitably  produced  its 
own  remedy.  The  famine  prices  of  provisions  made 
people  seriously  entertain  the  idea  of  growing  wheat 
or  rearing  stock  themselves,  and  the  ridiculously  low 
figure  at  which  land  could  now  be  bought  enabled 
those  who  previously  had  expected  to  earn  wages  to 
become  themselves  proprietors.  A  large  number  of 
sheep  and  cattle  had  moreover  been  brought  overland 
from  Port  Phillip  and  New  South  Wales,  by  the  most 
enterprising  of  the  squatters,  many  of  whom  were  so 
well  satisfied  with  the  quality  of  the  country  in  South 
Australia  that  they  determined  to  remain  ;  so  that 
both  agricultural  and  pastoral  pursuits  were  at  last 
systematically  prosecuted. 

The  little  settlement  about  this  time  presented  a 
curious  spectacle.  Society  might  be  roughly  divided 
into  three  classes — first,  the  original  immigrants,  who 
had  started  from  England  with  a  certain  amount  of 
capital,  which  had  been  as  a  rule  squandered  in  specu- 
lation ;  secondly,  the  wretched,  starving  labourers  ; 
and  last  (but  by  no  means  the  least  important),  the 
"  Overlanders "  from  the  other  colonies,  who  not 
infrequently  dissipated  much  of  what  they  received 
from  their  live  stock  in  noisy  revelry,  which  scanda- 
lised the  little  town.  These  wild  bushmen  were  the 
only  people  who  were  contented  or  well-to-do,  and 
their  prosperity  stood  out  in  greater  contrast  owing 


GAWLER   RECALLED.  305 

to  the  misery  and  hopelessness  of  their  surround- 
ings. 

Meanwhile  the  serious  predicament  in  which  the 
colony  was  placed  by  its  practical  inability  to  pay 
its  debts  had  been  occupying  the  attention  of  the 
English  Government.  Gawler  appears  to  have  been 
held  entirely  responsible  for  the  trouble,  and  the 
difficulties  which  he  inherited  from  his  predecessor 
were  overlooked  in  the  desire  to  fix  the  blame  for  the 
failure  of  the  colonising  scheme  on  some  one.  As  a 
matter  of  fact,  the  collapse  was  a  natural  sequence  of 
the  apathy  and  ignorance  of  the  first  batch  of  immi- 
grants, for  seeds  were  sown  in  the  first  few  months  of 
the  occupation  of  the  territory  which  could  not  fail 
to  bear  disastrous  fruit,  however  capable  might  have 
been  the  administration  of  the  Government.  Gawler 
was  the  scapegoat,  and  in  May,  1841,  he  was  uncere- 
moniously recalled.  The  English  Government  had 
determined  to  lend  the  colony  sufficient  to  enable  it 
to  pay  its  debts,  and  to  entirely  remodel  the  system 
of  administration.  The  Commission  was  abolished, 
and  South  Australia  became  to  all  intents  and  pur- 
poses a  Crown  colony. 

Captain  George  Grey  was  despatched  to  take 
charge,  and  Gawler  was  surprised  one  day  by  a  visit 
from  this  officer,  who  presented  his  papers,  and  im- 
mediately took  the  reins  of  government  into  his  own 
hands.  Grey  was  fortunate,  for  he  reaped  the  full 
benefit  of  the  lesson  learnt  by  the  people  from  past 
failures.  As  soon  as  farming  was  energetically  pro- 
secuted it  was  found  that  the  land,  which  had 
appeared  nothing  but  an  uninviting  wilderness  to  the 

21 


306  EARLY  SETTLEMENT. 

first  arrivals,  was  in  reality  extremely  fertile,  and 
admirably  adapted  both  for  agriculture  and  wool 
growing.  The  change  wrought  by  a  couple  of  years 
of  steady  work  was  wonderful.  Butter  and  cheese 
were  exported  in  considerable  quantities,  and  the  area 
under  wheat  had  so  broadened  that  the  crop  yielded 
a  surplus  available  for  export  over  and  above  local 
requirements.  After  the  harvest  of  1845  not  only 
were  the  neighbouring  markets  fully  stocked  with 
South  Australian  breadstuffs,  but  there  was  a  large 
balance  remaining  on  the  hands  of  farmers  for  which 
they  could  find  no  purchasers. 


XXIV. 


IMPROVING   PROSPECTS. 
(1840-1855.) 

THE  year  1840  is  memorable  on  account  of  the 
efforts  at  exploration  made  by  Edward  John  Eyre, 
who,  with  five  Europeans,  three  aborigines,  some 
horses,  and  a  small  flock  of  sheep,  started  from 
Adelaide,  intending,  if  possible,  to  penetrate  the 
interior  and  cross  the  continent.  Journeying  first  to 
the  head  of  Spencer's  Gulf,  he  there  received  a  fresh 
supply  of  provisions  from  a  small  vessel  which  had 
been  sent  to  meet  him,  and  then,  after  travelling  some 
way  through  an  arid  desert,  he  turned  to  the  west, 
and  sighted  what  at  first  appeared  to  be  a  large  lake, 
but  on  closer  examination  proved  to  be  nothing 
but  a  dried-up  bed,  covered  with  a  sheet  of  glittering 
salt.  Boldly  the  explorers  advanced  on  the  trea- 
cherous surface,  but  at  every  step  the  coat  of  salt 
cracked,  and  their  feet  sank  into  thick  black  mud. 
For  some  miles  they  pursued  their  way,  but  at  length 
the  black  ooze  became  so  deep  that  they  were  com- 
pelled to  retrace  their  steps,  and  seek  some  way  round 


EYRE'S  EXPLORING  EXPEDITION.         309 

the  shores  of  the  swamp.     After  much  fruitless  toil 
they  were   obliged   to   hasten    back  to    the    nearest 
stream,  but,  having  procured  a  fresh  store  of  water, 
they  again  faced  the  inhospitable  interior,  and  twice 
their  path  was  barred  by  the  great  salt  lakes.     At 
length,  turning  westward,  they  pushed   forward,  but 
were  soon  deep  in  a  barren  waste,  desolate  in   the 
extreme.     Again  supplies  ran  short,  and  death  from 
thirst  stared  them  in  the  face,  when  their  fears  were 
removed  by  the  sight  of  a  fair-sized  river  in  the  dis- 
tance.    Hastening  joyfully  to  its  banks,  they  eagerly 
knelt  to  drink  the    water,  but  to  their  horror   and 
despair  found  it  salt,  and  hopelessly  they  turned  back 
towards  the  head  of  Spencer's  Gulf.     Loath,  however, 
to  return  to  Adelaide  without  having  accomplished 
something  in  the  way  of  discovery,  instead  of  turning 
homeward  they  travelled  along    the  shores    of   the 
Great  Australian  Bight,  with  the  intention  of  follow- 
ing the   coast  to  Albany.     The  lack  of  water  again 
greatly  retarded  progress.    Three  times  they  struggled 
round   Streaky  Bay,  but  as  often  had  to  return  to 
obtain  water  to   drink.      At  length  Eyre  made  the 
whole  of  his  party,  with  the  exception  of  one  man 
named  Baxter  and  three  natives,  return  to  Adelaide, 
and,  taking  a  few  horses  and  a  large  supply  of  water 
and  provisions,  he  and  his  four  companions  once  more 
made  an  attempt  to  round  the  Bight.     Day  after  day 
they  struggled  on  through  loose  sand    and  burning 
rocks,  all  the  time  suffering  greatly  from  the  glare 
and  the  want  of  water.     Once  the  whole  party  nearly 
perished.     Even  the  horses  fell  down,  unable  to  pro- 
ceed any  further.     But  after  a  long  tramp  Eyre  with 


310          IMPROVING  PROSPECTS. 

one  attendant  discovered  several  small  holes,  appa- 
rently dug  in  the  sand  by  the  natives,  and  gathering 
water  hastened  back  to  revive  the  exhausted  animals. 
They  camped  at  the  water  holes  for  a  week,  and  then 
once  more  set  out  on  their  perilous  journey.  Again 
they  passed  a  long  stretch  of  desert  waste,  and  two 
of  the  beasts  died  ;  consequently  a  large  portion  of 
the  provisions  had  to  be  abandoned.  But  to  turn 
back  now  was  as  hopeless  as  to  go  forward,  and  they 
despondently  pushed  on.  Baxter,  while  Eyre  was 
absent  a  short  time  from  the  camp,  was  murdered  by 
two  of  the  blacks,  who  looted  the  stores  and  ran 
away.  The  ground  was  too  rocky  for  Eyre  even  to 
dig  a  grave  in  which  to  lay  his  friend's  body,  and,  roll- 
ing it  in  a  blanket,  he  left  it  on  the  scorched  rock. 
With  the  remaining  black  he  trudged  wearily  onwards, 
until  at  length  a  vessel  was  observed  close  to  the 
coast,  and  signs  made  by  Eyre  were  answered.  Fresh 
clothes  and  food  were  obtained  from  the  captain,  and 
three  weeks  later  they  reached  Albany,  and  were 
received  with  enthusiasm  by  the  inhabitants.  After 
remaining  a  short  time,  they  returned  to  Adelaide, 
where  Eyre's  account  of  his  travels  created  a  deep 
sensation. 

A  very  great  change  in  the  prospects  of  the  settle- 
ment was  about  this  time  caused  by  the  discovery  of 
rich  mineral  deposits.  During  1841  a  man  in  charge 
of  a  team  of  bullocks  was  crossing  the  Mount  Lofty 
Range,  and,  as  the  road  was  steep  and  rough,  on 
reaching  the  summit  he  resorted  to  the  common 
expedient  of  making  a  heavy  log  fast  to  the  tail  of 
the  waggon  to  act  as  a  drag,  or  brake,  to  prevent  the 


DISCO  VERY  OF  SILVER.  3!  I 

load  from  pressing  too  heavily  on  the  bullocks.  This 
done,  the  journey  was  resumed,  but  as  the  waggon 
went  lumbering  along  over  ruts  and  boulders  the  log 
bumped  and  ploughed  up  the  track  in  its  rear,  and 
the  eye  of  the  driver,  who  had  loitered  a  little  behind, 
was  suddenly  caught  by  the  glitter  of  something  in 
the  freshly  disturbed  earth.  He  picked  it  up  and 
examined  it.  It  certainly  was  a  very  bright  and 
heavy  piece  of  rock,  and,  what  was  more,  the  whole 
surrounding  country  was  covered  with  the  same  stuff. 
Convinced  that  the  stone  contained  some  valuable 
mineral,  he  gathered  specimens,  and  made  the  best  of 
his  way  to  Adelaide.  On  showing  his  find  to  per- 
sons in  the  city  he  learned  that  it  was  rich  ore,  and 
shortly  afterwards  the  land  on  which  he  had  seen 
it  was  opened  up,  and  a  quantity  of  silver  and  silver 
lead  obtained. 

In  the  following  year  a  still  more  important  dis- 
covery was  made  on  Kapunda  Station,  first  by  a  son 
of  the  proprietor,  Captain  Bagot,  and  shortly  after- 
wards by  an  overseer  named  Button.  Attracted  by 
the  brilliant  green  colour  of  an  outcropping  rock,  an 
examination  showed  that  the  land  hid  extensive 
deposits  of  rich  copper  ore.  Captain  Bagot  saw  his 
opportunity,  and,  without  allowing  any  suspicion  of 
the  nature  of  his  find  to  get  abroad,  applied  to  have 
the  eighty  acres  which  embraced  the  lode  put  up  to 
auction.  It  was  apparently  rocky,  sterile  country,  so 
there  was  no  competition,  and  it  was  bought  by  Bagot 
for  a  minimum  price  of  £1  per  acre.  As  soon  as  he 
had  possession  active  operations  were  commenced, 
with  the  most  satisfactory  results,  and  an  enormous 


312          IMPROVING  PROSPECTS. 

return  was  obtained  by  the  lucky  owners.  The 
Kapunda  mine  became  the  great  topic  of  conversa- 
tion, and  men  and  money  began  to  flow  into  South 
Australia  from  the  other  provinces.  The  search  for 
mineral  wealth  soon  resulted  in  the  discovery  of 
another  rich  copper  reef,  about  forty-five  miles  from 
Kapunda,  and  ninety  miles  from  Adelaide.  The 
land  on  which  it  was  situated  was  still  the  property 
of  the  Crown,  and  as  rumours  of  the  find  had  got 
abroad,  keen  competition  was  anticipated  if  the  sec- 
tions were  put  up  to  auction.  There  appeared  only 
one  way  to  avoid  this,  which  was  for  those  anxious 
to  become  possessed  of  the  mine  to  combine  and 
avail  themselves  of  the  provision  of  the  Crown  Lands 
Regulation  which  permitted  specially  surveyed  blocks 
of  not  less  than  20,000  acres  to  be  bought  at  the 
minimum  of  £1  per  acre  without  competition.  Two 
companies  were  hastily  formed  to  purchase  the  land 
on  these  terms — one  consisting  principally  of  Captain 
Bagot's  friends,  and  the  other  of  merchants  and 
tradesmen  in  Adelaide.  The  rival  parties  watched 
each  other  with  jealous  eyes,  fearing  that  each  would 
forestall  the  other  before  arrangements  could  be  com- 
pleted. 

But  in  a  small  community  such  as  that  in  South 
Australia  £20,000  in  gold  was  a  large  sum  to  find  for 
speculative  purposes,  and  at  length,  as  competitors 
from  Sydney  were  expected,  the  two  companies 
were  forced  to  combine  their  forces  in  self-defence, 
on  the  understanding  that  directly  the  land  was 
bought  it  should  be  equally  divided  between  Bagot's 
"  Princess  Royal  Company  " — or,  as  they  were  popu- 


"NOBS"   AND   "SNOBS"   LAND   COMPANIES.    313 

larly  called,  the  "  Nobs  "—and  the  "  South  Australian 
Mining  Company,"  commonly  known  as  the  "  Snobs." 
After  an  enormous  amount  of  trouble,  the  necessary 
^"20,000  in  gold  was  scraped  together,  the  Governor 
refusing  to  accept  anything  in  payment  except 
coin,  and  the  land  was  secured.  It  was  generally 
supposed  that  copper  was  to  be  obtained  from 
the  whole  of  the  property,  but  after  the  division 
had  been  made  the  expectations  of  the  "  Princess 
Royal  Company  "  were  by  no  means  realised,  while 
the  Burra  Burra  mine,  belonging  to  the  "  Snobs," 
yielded  handsome  returns.  The  copper  deposits 
were  actively  worked,  and  before  long  there  were 
fully  five  thousand  persons  on  the  field,  and  the  roads 
to  the  new  town  were  constantly  traversed  by  hun- 
dreds of  teams  of  bullocks,  which  plodded  from  the 
seaboard  to  the  mines,  carrying  provisions  and  stores 
for  the  miners,  or  bringing  the  heavy  ores  to  port  for 
shipment  to  Europe. 

The  sudden  acquisition  of  mineral  wealth,  perhaps 
more  than  anything  else,  raised  South  Australia  from 
the  slough  of  despond  into  which  it  had  sunk,  and 
Grey  was  enabled  to  put  into  force  the  principles 
which  Gawler  had  wished,  but  had  been  unable  to 
follow.  At  first  his  energetic  administration  provoked 
great  opposition,  and  noisy  meetings  were  held  in 
Adelaide,  at  which  violence  was  threatened  if  he 
persisted  in  his  policy  of  retrenchment,  and  the 
Governor's  recall  was  loudly  demanded.  The  wages 
of  men  on  public  works  were  reduced  from  is.  6d. 
(with  rations)  per  day  to  is.  2d.,  and  everything 
that  could  be  done  was  done  to  make  Government 


314  IMPROVING   PROSPECTS. 

employment  compare  unfavourably  with  the  offers 
of  private  masters.  Meanwhile  the  estimates  of 
expenditure  which  had  been  prepared  for  Gawler 
were  ruthlessly  cut  down,  and  strenuous  efforts 
were  made  to  bring  the  public  outgo  to  something 
approaching  the  same  figure  as  the  legitimate 
public  income.  The  steps  taken  were  successful, 
and  Grey,  by  his  carefulness  and  determination, 
soon  produced  order  out  of  chaos,  and  prepared 
the  colony  to  reap  the  full  benefit  of  its  changed 
prospects.  In  three  years  the  expenditure  was 
brought  to  one-sixth  of  its  former  amount,  and 
meantime  the  revenue  from  local  sources  had  mate- 
rially increased. 

Even  while  the  outlook  was  most  gloomy,  the 
inhabitants  had  been  frequently  pleading  for 
representative  institutions.  The  settlement  had 
scarcely  shown  itself  capable  of  properly  managing 
its  own  affairs,  and  the  answer  to  the  prayer  of 
the  petitioners  was  that  before  the  representative 
principle  could  be  conceded  it  must  "  be  made  evident 
that  the  internal  resources  of  the  colony  are  fully 
adequate  to  provide  for  its  own  expenditure."  In 
the  meantime  a  nominee  council,  consisting  of  seven 
members,  was  appointed  to  assist  the  Governor,  and 
take  in  some  degree  the  place  which  had  been  oc- 
cupied by  the  defunct  commission.  Grey  had  done 
well,  and  the  success  of  his  administration  won  the 
applause  of  many  who  were  the  loudest,  shortly  before, 
in  the  denunciation  of  his  methods.  In  1845  more 
meetings  were  held,  but  this  time  praise,  not  blame, 
was  showered  on  the  head  of  the  Governor,  who  a.t 


COLONEL   J.   H.   ROBE.  315 

the  height  of  his  popularity  was  transferred  to  New 
Zealand. 

Colonel  J.  H.  Robe  was  selected  to  fill  Grey's  place, 
but  his  career  in  South  Australia  was  short  and 
troubled,  for  although  a  fine,  straightforward  man,  he 
was  always  out  of  touch  with  the  feelings  of  his  sub- 
jects. The  chief  difficulty  arose  from  an  attempt  to 
tax  the  output  of  the  mines,  but  the  violent  opposition 
which  this  measure  excited  was  due  as  much  to  hostile 
feeling  towards  the  Governor  on  account  of  his  Re- 
ligious Endowment  Bill,  as  to  any  injustice  in  the 
proposition  to  impose  a  royalty  on  minerals.  Robe 
had  endeavoured  soon  after  his  arrival  to  pass  a  Bill 
affording  State  aid  "  to  provide  for  ordinances  of 
religion,"  and  only  carried  his  point  in  the  Council 
after  a  bitter  struggle.  When,  therefore,  his  next 
important  measure,  the  Mineral  Royalty  Bill,  came 
on  for  discussion,  it  created  no  surprise  that  even  the 
Council  deserted  him.  As  he  could  not  obtain  legis- 
lative sanction  to  the  tax,  he  endeavoured  to  impose 
it  on  the  authority  of  royal  prerogative.  This  step 
was  obviously  a  mistake,  and  called  forth  a  stormy 
and  angry  protest ;  indeed,  Robe's  inability  to  get  on 
with  those  under  his  charge  became  so  apparent  that 
the  English  Government  recalled  him. 

The  next  Governor  sent  out  was  Sir  Henry  Young, 
who  was  possessed  of  just  the  qualities  which  Robe 
had  lacked.  He  entered  with  enthusiasm  into  all  the 
schemes  of  the  settlers  for  the  rapid  development  of 
the  colony,  and  led  the  way  with  more  energy  than 
discretion  in  many  attempts  to  open  up  the  country. 
The  event  which  is  most  intimately  associated  with 


316  IMPROVING   PROSPECTS. 

his  name  is  the  navigation  of  the  river  Murray.  It 
appeared  to  Young  that  great  things  must  follow 
could  the  magnificent  waterway  of  the  Murray  be 
used  for  navigation,  and  money  was  freely  spent  to 
attain  this  object.  Large  sums  were  expended  in  an 
attempt  to  remove  the  bar  at  the  mouth  of  the  river, 
and  a  prize  of  ^4,000  was  offered  to  the  first  person 
who  should  successfully  navigate  the  Murray  to  the 
junction  of  the  Darling  in  an  iron  steamer.  Such  a 
reward  naturally  produced  competitors,  and,  after 
infinite  trouble  and  expense,  Mr.  Cadell  succeeded  in 
accomplishing  the  feat ;  but  the  ^"4,000  did  not  cover 
his  outlay,  and  when  he  tried  subsequently  to  create 
a  carrying  trade  in  wool  from  the  stations  along  the 
banks  of  the  river  to  the  sea,  his  efforts  ended  in 
financial  failure.  The  Governor  was  not  more  fortu- 
nate at  Port  Elliot.  As  fast  as  the  sand  was  dredged 
away,  fresh  deposits  of  silt  accumulated,  until  at  last 
the  attempt  to  form  a  harbour  was  abandoned,  and 
the  £20,000  or  more  which  had  been  spent  upon  the 
work  was  practically  thrown  away. 

The  advance  of  South  Australia  received  a  check  in 
1851,  when  the  discovery  of  gold  in  Victoria  caused 
the  greater  part  of  the  capital  and  enterprise  which 
had  worked  such  wonders  to  be  suddenly  withdrawn. 
A  period  of  general  stagnation  followed,  and  it  looked 
by  no  means  improbable  that  the  miserable  times  of 
Gawler  were  going  to  be  repeated.  The  copper  mines 
were  still  kept  open,  but  only  with  great  difficulty,  for 
the  gold-fields  had  attracted  a  very  large  proportion 
of  the  adult  male  population,  and  the  properties  could 
not  obtain  sufficient  labourers.  Agricultural  and 


318          IMPROVING  PROSPECTS. 

pastoral  pursuits  suffered  most,  and  for  a  short  time 
the  fields  which  should  have  been  waving  with  yellow 
corn  were  bare  and  neglected,  and  the  flocks  and 
herds  had  to  get  along  as  best  they  could,  unshepherded 
and  uncared  for.  While  Adelaide  was  languishing, 
Young's  ears  were  filled  with  stories  of  the  fabulous 
wealth  and  growth  of  Melbourne,  until  the  Governor 
decided  to  make  an  effort  to  divert  to  the  South 
Australian  port  for  shipment  some  of  the  stream  of 
gold  which  was  flowing  from  the  Victorian  mines. 
An  extremely  well  equipped  gold  escort  was  therefore 
established  between  Bendigo  and  Adelaide,  and  the 
advantages  anticipated  by  Young  were  to  some  extent 
realised.  As  the  excitement  of  the  first  rush  died  out, 
many  of  those  who  had  deserted  South  Australia 
returned  to  their  former  homes,  finding  that  it  was  a 
surer  and  more  profitable  enterprise  in  the  end  to 
supply  bread  and  other  necessaries  to  the  miners  than 
to  join  themselves  in  the  feverish  hunt  which  ended  so 
much  more  often  in  failure  than  a  fortune. 

The  returning  population  brought  renewed  pros- 
perity, but  the  sudden  exodus  had  produced  some 
curious  problems,  which  the  Government  had  great 
difficulty  in  solving.  The  most  remarkable  of  these 
was  the  complete  withdrawal  of  all  coined  money  from 
the  colony  by  persons  travelling  to  Victoria.  Before 
the  gold  rush  had  been  long  in  progress  it  was  found 
that  very  grave  difficulty  was  being  experienced  by 
merchants  and  others,  owing  to  the  want  of  a  common 
circulating  medium.  There  was  gold  in  plenty,  after 
the  institution  of  the  escort  from  Bendigo,  but  it 
varied  in  fineness,  and  was  unsuitable  for  exchange  pur- 


RENEWED   PROSPERITY.  319 

poses,  on  account  of  the  opportunities  its  use  afforded 
for  fraudulent  practices.  The  position  was  serious, 
for  commerce  showed  signs  of  being  paralysed  by  the 
difficulties  thus  created.  The  Governor  had  no 
authority  to  coin,  and  no  plant  for  minting  purposes, 
so  he  took  the  next  best  course,  and  issued  little 
blocks  or  ingots  of  the  precious  metal  of  an  uniform 
size  and  fineness.  The  expedient  met  the  case,  and 
relieved  the  commercial  strain,  but  the  action  taken 
by  Young  was  without  doubt  ultra  vires,  and  he  con- 
sequently received  a  mild  rebuke  at  the  hands  of  the 
Secretary  of  State. 

Meanwhile  the  work  of  opening  up  the  interior  had 
been  pushed  ahead.  John  McDowall  Stuart,  who 
had  been  in  Sturt's  expedition  to  the  Stoney  Desert, 
was  employed  in  1859  by  a  number  of  squatters 
to  explore  new  country,  and,  having  found  a  pas- 
sage between  Lakes  Eyre  and  Torrens,  discovered 
fine  pastures.  In  the  following  year,  the  South  Aus- 
tralian Government  offered  .£2,000  to  the  first  person 
who  should  cross  the  continent  from  south  to  north, 
and  Stuart  started  from  Adelaide  to  make  the  attempt. 
With  two  men  he  travelled  towards  Van  Diemen's  Gulf, 
and  penetrated  to  within  four  hundred  miles  of  the 
coast ;  but  the  natives  were  so  hostile  that  he  had  to 
return.  The  next  year  he  followed  the  same  course, 
and  got  to  within  250  miles  of  the  northern  shores,  but 
want  of  provisions  on  this  occasion  made  him  again 
turn  back.  The  report  of  this  expedition  was  sent  to 
Burke  and  Wills,  and  was  received  by  them  shortly 
before  they  left  Cooper's  Creek  for  the  first  time.  In 
1862,  Stuart  succeeded  in  reaching  Van  Diemen's 


320 


IMPROVING   PROSPECTS. 


Gulf,  and  returned  safely,  but  a  shadow  was  thrown 
over  his  entry  into  Adelaide  by  the  arrival  on  the 
same  day  of  the  remains  of  Burke  and  Wills,  on 
their  way  to  Melbourne. 


XXV. 


UNDER   RESPONSIBLE   GOVERNMENT 
(1855-1893.) 

SOUTH  AUSTRALIA  went  through  much  the  same 
stages  of  constitutional  development  as  the  other 
Australian  colonies,  and  although  the  final  measure 
conceding  autonomy  was  based  on  more  democratic 
principles  than  anywhere  else,  the  political  life  of  the 
country  has  been  comparatively  uneventful.  In  1851, 
when  the  Legislatures  of  New  South  Wales  and  Vic- 
toria were  altered,  a  Council  consisting  of  eight 
nominee  and  sixteen  elected  members  was  provided. 
This  arrangement,  however,  was  of  short  duration. 
When  the  Council  met  in  1853,  the  Governor  informed 
members  that  Bills  had  been  prepared  making  the 
necessary  pro  vision  for  an  alteration  of  the  Constitution. 
The  idea  was  that  a  nominee  Upper  House  should  be 
created,  the  seats  in  which  would  be  tenable  for  life, 
and  that  an  Assembly  should  be  elected  by  the 
people  on  a  low  suffrage  every  three  years.  The 
authority  of  the  two  chambers  was  to  be  equal  on  all 
points,  except  that  Money  Bills  should  be  introduced 


321 


322          UNDER   RESPONSIBLE   GOVERNMENT. 

in  the  Assembly ;  but  the  rather  remarkable  stipula- 
tion was  made  that  the  latter  body  might,  at  the 
termination  of  the  third  Parliament,  pass  a  Bill 
changing  the  constitution  of  the  Council,  and  making 
it  elective  without  requiring  the  consent  of  that  body 
to  the  alteration.  But  popular  feeling  was  so  averse 
to  a  nominated  body  of  any  description,  even  with  the 
safeguards  suggested,  that  these  proposals  were  never 
made  law,  and  in  deference  to  the  wishes  expressed 
by  the  inhabitants  the  original  Constitution  Bill  was 
delayed  in  England,  and  eventually  referred  back  to 
the  South  Australian  Council  for  amendment.  At 
length,  at  the  close  of  1855,  another  measure,  very 
different  in  character,  was  forwarded  from  the  colony 
for  the  sanction  of  the  Imperial  Parliament.  The 
Legislative  Council  in  the  second  Bill  was,  like  that 
of  Tasmania,  elected  by  the  colony  as  one  constituency, 
on  a  low  franchise,  and  the  province  was  divided  into 
districts  for  the  election  of  members  to  the  Assembly, 
the  basis  of  the  suffrage  being  that  each  male  adult, 
above  the  age  of  twenty-one  years,  duly  registered  and 
resident  for  six  months  in  South  Australia,  should 
have  the  privilege  of  one  vote.  The  Bill  was  passed 
intact  by  the  Imperial  Parliament,  and  received  the 
royal  assent  in  January,  1856. 

From  that  time  to  the  present  but  little  constitu- 
tional change  has  been  effected,  and  although  the  life 
of  successive  ministries  has  been  extremely  short, 
contests  between  the  two  houses  have  been  rare,  and 
the  public  life  of  the  colony  has  been  singularly  free 
from  violent  upheaval.  With  the  attainment  of 
plenary  powers  of  legislation,  the  history  of  social  and 


MR.  R.   TORRENS.  323 

political  development  practically  closes,  and  the  only 
events  to  be  described  in  the  following  years  are  the 
great  efforts  which  have  been  made  towards  internal 
expansion  and  amendment  of  the  arrangements 
affecting  the  disposal  of  the  public  estate.  The 
legislation  of  the  colony  was  adorned  in  1858  by  a 
measure  of  such  obvious  and  universal  utility  that  it 
has  been  generally  adopted,  not  only  by  the  other 
provinces  of  the  Australian  group,  but  in  a  large  mea- 
sure by  the  mother  country.  Mr.  R.  Torrens,  who 
was  a  Government  official  before  the  inauguration  of 
the  new  Constitution,  and  later  a  member  of  the  first 
Legislative  Assembly,  became  impressed  with  the 
extreme  difficulty  which  existed  in  the  transference  of 
real  estate.  To  remove  these  hindrances,  he  devised 
a  method  by  which  registration  was  combined  with  a 
system  of  endorsement  on  the  original  title  deed  of 
all  changes  made  in  the  ownership  of  the  land  ;  so 
that,  instead  of  a  long  series  of  involved  legal  docu- 
ments, the  purchaser  of  real  estate  would  only  have  to 
be  satisfied  as  to  the  soundness  of  one  deed.  A  mea- 
sure of  such  sweeping  reform  could  not  be  introduced 
without  a  large  amount  of  opposition,  but  Torrens' 
Bill  was  nevertheless  passed,  and  it  has  proved  to  be 
one  of  the  greatest  boons  ever  conferred  upon  the 
community. 

Although,  owing  to  the  energy  of  Torrens,  facilities 
for  dealing  in  private  property  were  greatly  increased, 
the  regulations  affecting  the  public  domain  remained 
for  some  years  much  less  satisfactory  than  those 
in  force  elsewhere.  The  early  troubles  of  South 
Australia  resulting  from  the  half-hearted  attempt  to 


324  UNDER   RESPONSIBLE   GOVERNMENT. 

put  into  operation  the  system  of  land  alienation  pro- 
pounded by  Gibbon  Wakefield  have  already  been 
recounted.  The  early  regulations  were  from  time  to 
time  modified,  but  no  radical  change  was  made  in  the 
land  laws  until  1872.  In  the  year  named,  an  Act  was 
passed  arranging  for  survey  of  all  land  before  sale. 
It  was  then  put  up  to  auction,  those  who  expressed 
the  intention  of  residing  on  their  properties  being 
given  first  choice.  After  this  class  had  been  satisfied, 
non-residents  were  permitted  to  compete  for  the 
remainder,  and  what  was  left  was  open  to  selection, 
without  competition,  at  a  minimum  price  of  £1  per 
acre.  The  payments  were  easy  and  spread  over 
a  number  of  years,  and  a  certain  value  of  improvement 
by  the  purchaser  was  necessary  before  a  title  could  be 
obtained. 

In  1888  the  Act  which  has  just  been  described 
gave  way  to  a  new  law  which  with  slight  amendment 
is  still  in  force.  All  metals  and  minerals  are  reserved 
to  the  Crown,  and  special  arrangements  are  made  for 
long  leases  for  pastoral  tenants,  and  sales  by  auction 
for  cash  in  some  cases,  and  on  deferred  payments  in 
others.  The  mining  industry  is  provided  for  by  the 
issue  of  specific  or  general  mining  leases,  these  last 
being  practically  prospecting  licenses.  The  conditions 
to  ensure  the  improvement  and  stocking  of  pastoral 
properties  are  stringent,  but  an  encouragement  to 
pioneers  is  given  by  the  offer  to  bona  fide  discoverers 
of  new  pastures  of  a  lease  at  the  rate  of  2s.  6d.  per 
annum  for  each  square  mile  of  country  occupied.  A 
special  feature  of  the  measure  is  the  portion  referring 
to  working-men's  blocks.  Under  these  clauses  twenty- 


LAND  AND  MINERALS  ACTS.  325 

acre  lots  in  certain  localities  may  be  leased  at  a 
nominal  rental  to  any  one  who  gains  his  livelihood 
by  his  own  labour  ;  but  residence  on  the  property  is 
required.  In  all  cases  the  rent  and  price  of  the  land 
is  determined  by  specially  appointed  boards,  who 
classify  the  country  under  their  direction  and  super- 
vise all  sales  and  other  transactions. 

The  Northern  Territory  of  South  Australia,  which 
lies  within  the  tropics,  is  dealt  with  under  a  special 
Act,  which  was  passed  in  1882,  and  the  inducements 
to  settlers  in  this  district  are  on  an  even  more  liberal 
scale.  Permission  is  given  for  alienation  of  blocks  of 
1280  acres  at  the  rate  of  I2s.  6d.  per  acre  cash,  or  on 
deferred  payments;  for  pastoral  occupation  leases  of 
any  area  up  to  four  hundred  square  miles  are  granted 
for  seven  years  at  6d.  and  for  a  further  eighteen  years 
at  2s.  6d.  per  annum  per  square  mile.  In  order  to 
encourage  the  growth  of  tropical  crops,  extremely 
advantageous  arrangements  are  made  for  the  leasing 
or  purchase  of  cultivation  blocks.  Hitherto  no  great 
progress  has  been  made  in  the  Northern  Territory, 
although  in  1864  a  serious  attempt  was  made  to 
utilise  the  country  which  had  lately  been  added  by 
the  English  Government  to  South  Australia,  at  the 
colony's  request.  Surveyors  were  despatched  to  the 
Gulf  to  mark  out  a  town  and  chart  the  country 
preparatory  to  leasing  or  alienation,  and  land  orders 
were  offered  both  in  England  and  Adelaide  at  a 
very  low  figure  in  the  hope  of  inducing  settlement. 
These  first  attempts  were,  however,  far  from  success- 
ful. The  surveyors  quarrelled  amongst  themselves, 
and  the  greater  portion  of  the  staff  deserted  their 


326       UNDER  RESPONSIBLE  GOVERNMENT. 

chief  and  returned  to.  Adelaide.  After  five  years  had 
been  wasted  Mr.  Goyder,  Surveyor-General,  himself 
went  north,  and  selected  Port  Darwin  as  the  best  site 
for  a  settlement,  and  a  town  called  Palmerston  had 
scarcely  been  laid  out  before  the  discovery  of  gold 
and  the  determination  of  the  Government  to  construct 
a  telegraph  right  across  the  continent  from  Adelaide 
gave  the  new  settlement  a  fair  start.  Land  in  this 
distant  region  was  offered  at  is.  6d.  an  acre,  on 
deferred  payment,  and  a  bonus  to  encourage  the 
cultivation  of  sugar  was  promised  by  the  Govern- 
ment. 

The  life  of  the  little  colony  in  the  Northern 
Territory  has  so  much  depended  on  the  overland 
telegraph  line,  that  it  may  be  well  here  to  refer  to  the 
work.  This  undertaking  had  long  been  contemplated, 
but  the  rather  vague  ideas  on  the  subject  were 
crystallised  by  an  offer  of  the  British  Australian 
Telegraph  Company,  which  contracted  to  lay  a 
submarine  cable  from  Singapore  to  Van  Diemen's 
Gulf,  if  the  South  Australian  Government  would 
undertake  to  connect  Adelaide  with  Port  Darwin,  by 
an  overland  wire,  thus  completing  telegraphic  com- 
munication with  Europe.  The  proposition  was 
favourably  received,  and  the  work  entered  upon  with 
enthusiasm.  Mr.  Todd  was  placed  in  charge,  and  it 
was  evident  from  the  outset  that  enormous  difficulties 
would  have  to  be  overcome.  For  one  thing,  over 
1,300  miles  of  telegraph  wire  would  have  to  be  laid 
through  practically  unexplored  country,  a  great 
portion  of  which  was  nothing  but  rocky  sandy 
deserts,  devoid  of  both  pasture  and  water.  The 


TELEGRAPH  AND   CABLE.  327 

whole  distance,  some  2,200  miles,  was  divided  into 
three  sections,  and  while  Mr.  Todd  entrusted  the  two 
extremities  to  contractors,  he  himself  personally 
supervised  the  middle  portion.  The  time  for  the 
completion  of  the  work  was  the  ist  of  January,  1872, 
when  the  Cable  Company  had  agreed  to  have  per- 
formed their  part ;  and  before  this  date  both  the 
Adelaide  end  and  the  centre  section  had  been  finished. 
In  the  far  north,  however,  the  work  had  failed.  There 
were  no  trees  for  posts,  the  difficulties  of  transport 
were  almost  unsurmountable,  and  the  tropical  heat 
was  too  great  for  the  labour  of  Europeans.  It  looked 
at  one  time,  indeed,  as  if  the  junction  would  never  be 
made,  and  as  the  date  agreed  upon  had  nearly  arrived, 
and  the  company  threatened  to  sue  the  Government  for 
damages  if  the  line  was  then  unfinished,  there  was 
much  consternation  in  Adelaide.  Mr.  Todd  hastened 
up  to  the  Port  Darwin  end,  to  see  what  could  be 
done.  Coolies  and  Chinese  were  introduced,  wells 
were  dug  along  the  route  and  iron  posts  provided 
where  trees  could  not  be  obtained,  and  by  great 
exertions  things  were  pushed  forward.  A  fracture 
in  the  submarine  cable  had  meanwhile  relieved  the 
Government  from  fear,  and  in  August  the  two  ends 
of  the  overland  wire  were  joined  at  Central  Mount 
Stewart,  and  then  the  first  telegraph  message  was 
flashed  from  shore  to  shore.  By  October  the  cable 
had  been  repaired,  and  telegraphic  communication 
was  established  with  the  old  world,  Australians  thus 
being  able  to  read  at  their  breakfast  tables  events 
which  had  occurred  in  Europe  but  a  few  hours 
previously.  Before  many  years  had  passed,  another 


328          UNDER   RESPONSIBLE   GOVERNMENT. 

telegraph  line  was  carried  along  the  arid  shores 
between  Adelaide  and  Albany  in  Western  Australia, 
so  that  now  there  is  direct  communication  between 
the  four  extremities  of  the  Australian  continent. 

The  construction  of  railways  has  also  been  con- 
siderable, but  at  present  the  railway  system  is  confined 
to  the  south-eastern  corner  of  the  colony,  with  the 
exception  of  the  track  which  runs  northward  towards 
Port  Darwin.  The  first  sod  of  the  great  trans- 
continental railway,  which  has  its  southern  terminus 
at  Port  Augusta,  was  turned  by  the  Governor,  Sir 
William  Jervois,  in  1878,  and  it  has  since  been 
extended  686  miles  from  Adelaide  to  Oodnadatta. 
The  construction  was  also  commenced  at  the  Port 
Darwin  end,  and  the  line  was  carried  to  Pine  Creek, 
leaving  a  gap  about  1,140  miles  still  to  be  covered 
before  traffic  can  be  opened  from  the  southern  to 
the  northern  coast. 

There  is  little  more  to  be  said  with  regard  to  South 
Australia,  which  has  been  singularly  happy  in  an  un- 
eventful history.  Gold  has  been  discovered  within 
its  borders,  but  not  in  sufficient  quantities  to  affect 
its  destiny  to  any  great  extent.  Nevertheless  it  is  rich 
in  minerals,  and  the  copper  deposits  of  Burra  Burra 
have  been  eclipsed  by  similar  discoveries  at  Moonta 
and  Wallaroo.  Agriculture  has  steadily  progressed, 
and  although  the  yield  of  wheat  is  light  per  acre, 
the  cost  of  clearing  and  preparing  the  soil  for  tillage 
is  proportionately  small,  and  the  South  Australian 
harvest  affords  annually  a  large  surplus  of  breadstuffs 
for  exportation  to  Europe  and  the  other  colonies. 
This  province  is  essentially  one  of  great  poten- 


PROGRESS  AND   SURVEY. 


329 


tialities.  Much  of  the  country  between  Adelaide  and 
Port  Darwin,  which  was  long  supposed  to  be  abso- 
lutely useless,  and  nothing  but  desert,  has  proved  to 
be  not  unsuitable  for  pastoral  purposes,  while  many 
of  the  rivers  which  flow  into  the  Gulf  of  Carpentaria 
are  bordered  by  rich  alluvial  flats  which  probably 
some  day  will  be  covered  by  extensive  cotton  and 
sugar  plantations.  The  great  problem  to  be  solved 
is  the  supply  of  labour  in  the  tropics  ;  but  apart  from 
this,  a  very  large  portion  of  the  country  is  as  yet 
practically  unexplored,  and  until  more  perfect  know- 
ledge is  obtained  of  its  capabilities  it  will  be  rash 
to  predict  what  the  future  of  South  Australia  may  be. 


QUEENSLAND. 
XXVI. 

THE   MORETON    BAY   SETTLEMENT. 
(I82S-I85I.) 

THE  colony  of  Queensland  owes  its  origin  to  the 
report  made  by  Mr.  Bigge,  on  the  state  of  the  penal 
establishments — towards  the  close  of  the  reign  of 
Governor  Macquarie  in  New  South  Wales — in  which 
he  recommended  that  some  spot  should  be  found 
to  which  the  worst  class  of  criminals  could  be 
despatched,  where  they  would  be  far  away  from  the 
temptations  which  were  inseparable  from  a  com- 
munity partly  bond  and  partly  free.  Surveyor- 
General  Oxley  was  therefore  sent  in  the  cutter 
Mermaid  to  seek  on  the  northern  coast  some  place 
which  would  meet  these  requirements.  Port  Curtis 
was  his  original  destination  ;  but  after  a  careful 
examination  -he  was  dissatisfied  with  its  qualifica- 
tions, and  turned  southwards  towards  Moreton  Bay. 
While  lying  at  anchor,  a  party  of  natives  was 
observed  approaching  the  shore,  and  the  attention 


332     THE  MORETON  BAY  SETTLEMENT. 

of  those  on  board  was  turned  towards  one  man, 
who  appeared  to  be  possessed  by  an  uncontrollable 
delight  at  the  sight  of  the  ship.  A  boat  was  sent 
ashore,  and  the  copper-coloured  savage  turned  out 
to  be  one  of  a  party  of  four  Europeans,  who  had 
left  Sydney  with  the  intention  of  sailing  to  the 
Illawarra  district  (to  the  south  of  the  capital  of 
New  South  Wales),  but  had  been  driven  by  storms 
far  out  of  their  course,  and  had  all  nearly  died  from 
thirst  and  exposure.  After  terrible  hardships,  under 
which  one  of  the  number  succumbed,  land  was 
sighted,  and  the  three  remaining  castaways  beached 
their  boat  at  a  spot  where  they  perceived  a  stream 
of  fresh  water.  The  intruders  were  soon  surrounded 
by  natives,  but  were  treated  with  extreme  kindness, 
and  Pamphlett — who  now  told  the  tale  to  Oxley — 
had  remained  with  them  ever  since.  The  desire 
for  civilised  life  had  been  too  strong  for  the  others, 
who  had  started  off  to  walk  home  under  the  im- 
pression that  they  were  south  of  Sydney.  It  is 
needless  to  say  that  they  were  never  heard  of  since. 
With  Pamphlett's  aid  a  large  river  was  discovered, 
and  Oxley  at  once  rowed  fifty  miles  up  and  made 
a  hurried  survey  of  the  country.  On  his  return  to 
Sydney  he  gave  a  most  enthusiastic  description  of 
his  discoveries,  with  the  result  that  after  considerable 
correspondence  between  the  Imperial  Government 
and  the  Governor — in  which  the  reluctance  of  the 
Secretary  of  State  to  found  a  new  settlement  was 
apparent — Oxley  was  ordered  in  September,  1824, 
to  again  set  sail  for  the  Brisbane  River,  in  the  brig 
Amity.  He  had  on  board  a  detachment  of  the  4Oth 


THE   STORY  OF  PAMPHLETT.  333 

Regiment,  in  charge  of  Lieutenant  Miller,  and  thirty 
prisoners,  who  were  to  form  the  first  penal  settle- 
ment on  the  north-east  coast.  In  the  following  year 
Captain  Logan  was  appointed  to  the  command,  and 
in  1826  Sir  Thomas  Brisbane  himself  visited  the  new 
depot,  which  in  his  opinion  met  all  the  requirement 
of  Bigge's  report  as  it  was  far  from  all  civilised 
habitations,  and  it  was  practically  impossible  for 
a  prisoner  to  escape.  Rapidly  additions  were  made 
to  the  convict  population,  but  as  no  free  settlers 
were  permitted  to  come  within  fifty  miles  of  the  gaol, 
the  early  doings  at  Brisbane  are  buried  in  oblivion. 
Sufficient,  nevertheless,  is  known  to  show  that  the 
Moreton  Bay  depot  rivalled  in  corruption  and 
brutality  Tasman's  Peninsula  or  Norfolk  Island. 
Tales  of  horrible  cruelty  and  disgusting  immorality, 
both  on  the  part  of  the  convicts  and  the  natives 
amongst  whom  they  were  suddenly  thrown,  were 
not  uncommon  ;  and  at  length  matters  were  brought 
to  a  crisis  by  the  murder  of  Logan.  The  deed  was 
committed  either  by  convicts — in  retaliation  for  some 
of  the  ferocious  attacks  which  had  been  made  upon 
them  by  the  overseers — or  else  by  the  natives,  who 
had  received  almost  equal  provocation.  Previous  to 
this  tragedy,  Logan  had  energetically  explored  the 
country,  with  which  he  was  almost  as  much  pleased 
as  Oxley  had  been,  and  made  also  experiments  in 
cotton-growing  and  in  the  establishment  of  some 
primitive  industries. 

From  the  date  of  Logan's  death,  the  Governors  of 
New  South  Wales  appear  to  have  had  a  desire  to 
abandon  Moreton  Bay,  and  the  criminal  establish- 


334  THE   MORETON  BAY   SETTLEMENT. 

ment  was  gradually  reduced.  Meanwhile  the  dis- 
coveries of  the  explorers  who  had  pierced  the 
country  between  Sydney  and  the  north,  traversing 
the  Darling  Downs,  had  induced  large  numbers  of 
stockowners  to  drive  their  flocks  and  herds  on  to 
the  new  pastures  ;  and  the  out-stations  of  the  most 
enterprising  crept  nearer  and  nearer  to  Brisbane. 
In  1839  it  was  determined  to  entirely  abandon 
Moreton  Bay  as  a  penal  establishment,  and  Lieu- 
tenant Gorman  was  sent  up  to  remove  the  last 
relics  of  the  gaol.  The  prohibition  against  free 
settlers  on  the  Brisbane  River  was  still  in  force  ; 
but,  although  not  revoked  for  some  time,  it  became 
a  dead  letter,  and  many  more  free  men  settled  on 
the  banks  of  the  river.  By  1841  a  large  portion  of 
the  Darling  Downs  had  been  taken  up  by  squatters, 
and  the  settlement  of  the  country  further  north  had 
so  far  progressed  that  the  Government  considered 
it  necessary  to  offer  allotments  in  the  towns  for  sale. 
Sir  George  Gipps  came  up  from  Sydney  and  laid 
out  the  plan  of  the  town  of  Brisbane,  on  the 
Brisbane  River,  and  another  town  further  inland 
called  Ipswich,  while  townships  named  Toowoomba 
and  Drayton  began  to  gather  round  two  wayside 
inns,  established  for  the  convenience  of  travellers 
across  the  Darling  Downs.  The  first  auction  of 
Crown  lands  situated  in  Brisbane  was  held  in 
Sydney  ;  sites  met  with  ready  sale,  at  prices 
averaging  about  ^343  per  acre. 

In  December,  1841,  the  ordinary  machinery  of 
government  for  a  free  community  was  provided  ; 
and  Captain  Wickham  was  sent  as  police  magistrate, 


336  THE   MORETON  BAY  SETTLEMENT. 

while  Crown  lands  commissioners  were  appointed 
for  the  Darling  Downs  and  Moreton  Bay  districts. 
The  pastoral  industries  of  the  province  rapidly 
increased ;  but  its  otherwise  satisfactory  progress 
was  marred  by  the  gross  brutality  displayed  towards 
the  natives.  The  very  early  settlers  seem  to  have 
been  inconvenienced  but  little  by  the  depredations 
or  hostility  of  the  aborigines,  but  soon  the  atrocities 
committed  by  the  shepherds  and  stockmen  on  out- 
lying stations  called  forth  acts  of  retaliatory  violence 
from  the  blacks,  which  were  in  their  turn  followed 
by  inhuman  revenge  at  the  hands  of  the  white  men. 
The  settlers  were  urgent  in  their  appeals  for  more 
police  protection,  and  a  body  of  native  police  officered 
by  Europeans,  was  formed  to  cope  with  the  disorders 
which  were  becoming  more  and  more  frequent.  But 
they  only  made  things  worse,  for  a  member  of  one 
native  tribe  displays  savage  enjoyment  in  the 
slaughter  of  members  of  any  other  tribes,  and  the 
native  police  soon  developed  into  an  armed  force  for 
the  extermination  of  the  aboriginal  inhabitants. 

It  is  needless  to  record  here  in  detail  the  disgust- 
ing atrocities,  which  are  well  known  to  all  who  were 
connected  with  pioneering  work  in  Queensland,  but 
a  few  instances  will  be  sufficient  to  give  an  idea  of 
the  manner  in  which  the  blacks  were  "  civilised." 
At  the  commencement  of  1860,  two  partners  in  a 
station  complained  in  the  papers  that  a  party  of 
native  police  had  shot  and  wounded  a  large  number 
of  blacks,  many  of  whose  bodies  were  left  to  rot 
unburied  within  a  mile  or  two  of  the  homestead. 
Even  those  natives  who  had  been  employed  pretty 


TREATMENT  OF   THE  BLACKS.  337 

constantly  for  many  years  by  the  owners  did  not 
escape,  but  friendly  and  hostile  blacks  had  been 
indiscriminately  shot  down.  A  further  instance  is 
recorded  in  which  a  sub-inspector  of  police  hand- 
cuffed a  native  boy,  tying  his  arms  to  a  high  rafter 
in  the  verandah  of  the  police  barracks,  and  then 
flogged  and  kicked  him  until  he  was  so  maimed  that 
he  shortly  died ;  while  on  another  occasion  some 
squatters  rode  down  and  shot  no  less  than  twenty- 
two  natives,  and  after  spending  the  night  by  a  water- 
hole,  walked  round  in  the  morning,  and  dashed  out 
the  brains  of  those  who  were  not  yet  dead  with  one 
of  their  own  clubs.  The  troopers  showed  little  com- 
punction in  murdering  scores  of  the  natives,  and 
on  one  occasion,  when  a  white  man  had  been  killed 
by  two  blacks,  a  body  of  police  in  the  dead  of  night 
stealthily  surrounded  the  tribe  to  which  the  culprits 
belonged.  A  korroboree  was  being  held  at  the  time ; 
at  a  given  signal  the  police  fired  a  volley  into 
the  midst  of  the  dancing  crowd,  and  then  rushed  in 
to  complete  the  work  of  destruction.  A  common 
method  of  freeing  a  run  of  the  aborigines  was  also 
by  wholesale  poisoning.  A  barrel  of  flour,  in  which 
white  arsenic  had  been  mixed,  was  given  with  a 
smile  as  a  present  to  the  unsuspecting  victims,  and 
before  long  half  the  tribe  would  be  writhing  and 
screaming  in  agony,  which  at  last  terminated  in 
death.  Could  it  be  wondered  at  if  the  blacks  took 
revenge  when  they  could  ? 

But  otherwise  the  settlers  showed  great  energy,  and 
entered  with  determination  upon  the  work  of  opening 
up  their  immense  territory.  Captain  Sturt,  who  had 

23 


333  THE   MORETON  BAY  SETTLEMENT. 

discovered  the  Darling  and  the  Murray,  offered  to 
conduct  an  expedition  into  the  centre  of  Australia ; 
and  in  1844  a  well-equipped  party  of  sixteen  persons 
started  from  the  banks  of  the  Darling,  at  the  furthest 
point  that  had  been  reached  in  1828.  Following  the 
course  of  the  river  they  passed  Laidley's  Ponds  and 
Lake  Cawndilla,  and  then  turned  northwards  for  the 
interior,  through  a  barren  desert,  until  they  reached 
a  few  hills  which  are  now  known  as  the  Barrier 
Range.  Fortunately  for  the  party  it  was  the  winter 
season,  and  they  could  obtain  a  moderate  supply 
of  water,  but  by  the  time  they  had  passed  another 
chain  of  hills,  which  Sturt  called  the  Grey  Range, 
summer  had  come.  The  heat  in  1844  was  ex- 
ceptionally intense,  and  in  the  sandy  plains  of  the 
interior  it  was  so  great  that  the  baked  earth  split 
the  hoofs  of  the  horses  and  quickly  dried  up  the 
Water  from  the  creeks.  One  party  found  a  stream, 
however,  flowing  in  a  rocky  basin,  and  Sturt  formed 
his  depot  beside  it,  remaining  there  for  six  months. 
Several  excursions  were  made  during  this  period, 
and  the  creek  on  which  they  were  camped  was 
followed,  but  after  a  course  of  twenty  miles  it  was 
lost  in  the  sand.  The  wanderers  suffered  terribly 
from  the  heat,  which  was  sometimes  as  high  as  130° 
in  the  shade.  The  ink  dried  on  their  pens  before 
they  could  touch  the  paper  to  write.  Their  combs 
split,  their  nails  became  brittle,  and  metal  if  touched 
burned  their  fingers.  A  hole  was  dug  in  the  ground 
sufficiently  deep  to  enable  them  to  escape  the  dread- 
ful glow  of  the  sun,  and  day  after  day  they  prayed 
for  rain.  At  last  the  party  grew  haggard  and  ill,  and 


EXPLORATIONS.  339 

one  being  attacked  with  scurvy  rapidly  sank  and 
died.  But  finally  rain  came,  and  as  there  was  now 
plenty  of  water,  the  journey  was  continued. 

After  travelling  northwards  sixty-one  miles  a  new 
depot  was  formed,  and  excursions  were  made  into 
the  surrounding  country.  But  as  they  journeyed 
further  north  they  came  to  a  region  of  hills  of  a 
barren  red  sand,  and  lagoons  of  salt  bitter  water. 
For  some  time  they  toiled  through  this  country,  but 
when  at  length  they  reached  the  last  hill  and  nothing 
was  to  be  seen  but  a  vast  stoney  plain,  which  Sturt 
called  the  Stoney  Desert,  summer  was  again  at  hand 
and  water  was  failing.  So  they  hastened  back ;  but 
their  water  was  exhausted  before  they  reached  the 
depot,  and  they  were  then  in  danger  of  being  buried 
by  shifting  sand  hills.  Sturt  made  one  more  attempt 
to  find  water,  discovering  a  magnificent  stream  which 
he  called  Cooper's  Creek.  But  on  again  entering 
Stoney  Desert,  he  was  compelled  to  retrace  his  steps, 
and  when  he  reached  the  depot  on  his  return  he  was 
worn  to  a  shadow  and  the  glare  of  the  sandy  waste 
had  blinded  him.  His  reports  on  the  arid  country 
gave  rise  to  the  idea  that  the  whole  centre  of 
Australia  was  one  vast  desert,  but  this  has  since 
been  proved  to  be  an  error, 

All  the  north-east  portion  of  the  continent  was  left 
unexplored  till  1844,  when  a  young  German  botanist, 
Ludwig  Leichardt,  with  five  men,  left  Sydney,  and, 
passing  through  magnificent  forests  and  fine  pastures, 
made  his  way  to  the  Gulf  of  Carpentaria,  dis- 
covering and  tracing  many  large  rivers  as  he  went. 
At  Van  Diemen's  Gulf  a  ship  was  waiting  to  bring 


THE   MORETON   BAY  SETTLEMENT. 

him  home  ;  and  on  his  return  to  Sydney  he  was 
rewarded  by  a  public  subscription  of  ;£  1,500,  and  a 
grant  from  the  Government  of  .£1,000.  In  1847  he 
again  started  to  make  further  explorations  in  the 
north  of  Queensland,  taking  with  him  sheep  and 
goats,  which,  however,  so  impeded  his  progress  that, 
after  wandering  over  the  Fitzroy  Downs  for  many 
months,  he  returned  without  having  achieved  any- 
thing. In  the  following  year  he  led  a  third  expedi- 
tion, with  which  he  intended  to  cross  the  whole 
continent  from  east  to  west  A  start  was  made  from 
Moreton  Bay,  and  in  two  years  he  expected  to  reach 
the  Swan  River  settlement.  A  large  party  set  out, 
and  soon  passed  the  Cogwoon  River,  and  from  this 
point  Leichardt  sent  a  hopeful  letter  to  a  friend  in 
Sydney.  But  no  news  has  since  been  received  of 
him  or  his  companions,  although  for  many  years 
expeditions  were  sent  out  to  search  for  him. 

On  Leichardt's  return  from  his  first  journey,  Sir 
Thomas  Mitchell  set  out  northwards,  and  after  dis- 
covering the  Culgoa  and  Warrego,  turned  west, 
travelling  over  a  great  extent  of  level  country.  At 
length  he  came  upon  a  river,  and  followed  the  current 
for  150  miles  towards  the  heart  of  the  continent, 
and  then  returned.  Edmund  Kennedy,  who  was 
soon  after  sent  to  trace  the  course  of  the  newly- 
found  stream,  followed  its  banks  for  150  miles 
below  the  place  at  which  Mitchell  had  turned  back. 
He,  too,  was  then  forced  to  return,  through  want  of 
provisions.  He  had  seen  enough,  however,  to  con- 
vince him  that  this  stream  was  only  the  upper  part 
of  Cooper's  Creek,  which  had  been  discovered  by 


DEATH   OF  KENNEDY.  341 

Sturt.  In  1848,  Kennedy  landed  on  the  north-east 
coast  with  twelve  men,  and  turning  inland  to  the 
north-west,  travelled  towards  Cape  York,  where  a 
vessel  was  to  meet  him.  Dense  jungles  and  prickly 
shrubs  barred  his  path,  and  tore  the  flesh  of  the 
travellers  at  every  step,  while  vast  swamps  often 
made  long  detours  necessary.  Leaving  eight  of  his 
companions  at  Weymouth  Bay,  he  pushed  on  to- 
wards the  north  with  three  others  and  a  black  boy, 
Jackey.  But  one  of  them  accidentally  shot  himself, 
and  was  unable  to  proceed.  Kennedy,  who  was  now 
only  a  few  miles  from  Cape  York,  left  the  wounded 
man  with  the  two  other  whites,  and  started,  accom- 
panied by  Jackey,  to  obtain  aid  from  the  schooner. 
Before  they  had  gone  far,  however,  a  tribe  of  natives 
attacked  them,  and  a  spear  hurled  from  among  the 
bushes  pierced  Kennedy  in  the  back,  and  he  fell  from 
his  horse.  The  blacks  rushed  forward,  but  Jackey 
fired  upon  them,  and  at  the  report  for  a  moment  they 
were  frightened  and  fled.  Kennedy  soon  died,  and 
the  faithful  Jackey  dug  a  grave  and  left  him  in  the 
forest.  Then  with  the  journals  and  other  papers  he 
plunged  into  a  stream,  and  walking  along  its  bed 
with  only  his  head  above  the  surface,  in  this  way 
escaped  his  enemies.  As  soon  as  he  reached  the 
Cape,  and  was  taken  on  board  the  schooner,  a  search 
party  was  despatched  for  the  wounded  man  and  his 
companions,  but  it  proved  fruitless,  while  only  two  of 
the  eight  who  had  stayed  at  Weymouth  Bay  had 
survived  starvation  and  disease,  when  relief  arrived. 


XXVII. 


THE  COLONY  OF  QUEENSLAND. 

(1851-1893.) 

QUEENSLAND  was  almost  as  hasty  as  Victoria  in 
its  demand  for  separation  from  the  parent  colony, 
and  in  1851  a  petition  was  forwarded  to  the  Queen, 
praying  for  the  same  concession  for  the  Moreton 
Bay  district  as  had  in  that  year  been  granted  to  Port 
Phillip.  The  petitioners  were  unsuccessful,  but  three 
years  later  they  renewed  their  appeal,  and  met  with 
a  favourable  reception.  As  a  result,  in  1855  an  Act 
was  passed  by  the  Imperial  Parliament  giving  the 
Government  power  to  make  a  division  of  New  South 
Wales,  so  as  to  form  a  new  colony,  when  such  a 
course  was  deemed  advisable.  But  delays  occurred, 
and  in  the  following  year  the  ministry  went  out  of 
office,  so  that  the  matter  received  no  attention  for  some 
time.  At  the  close  of  1859,  however,  the  desired 
change  was  made,  and  the  portion  of  New  South 
Wales  to  the  north  of  the  29th  parallel  of  latitude 
was  proclaimed  a  separate  colony,  under  the  name 
of  Queensland.  Sir  George  Bowen  was  appointed  the 
first  Governor,  and  the  town  of  Brisbane,  which  then 


34« 


SEPARATION  FROM  NEW  SOUTH    WALES.      343 

contained  about  seven  thousand  inhabitants,  was 
chosen  as  the  capital  and  seat  of  government  The 
new  colony  covered  more  than  670,000  square  miles 
of  country,  but  its  inhabitants  numbered  only  about 
twenty- five  thousand  persons. 

Queensland  was  never  as  a  separate  colony  under 
the  nominee  system  of  government,  but  commenced 
its  career  under  the  guidance  of  responsible  ministers. 
The  first  Parliament  opened  on  the  2Qth  of  May,  1860, 
the  Legislative  Council,  which  consisted  of  members 
nominated  by  the  Governor  for  life,  and  the  Assembly 
being  elected  by  the  people  under  what  is  practically 
manhood  suffrage,  the  only  qualification  being  six 
months'  residence.  Any  person  on  the  electoral  roll 
is  qualified  to  be  a  member.  The  duration  of  Parlia- 
ments is  now  limited  to  three  years,  and  members  of 
the  Assembly  receive  a  salary  of  £300  per  annum. 

In  1858  a  rush  took  place  to  the  banks  of  the 
Fitzroy  River,  in  the  far  north,  where  gold  was 
said  to  have  been  found.  Ship  after  ship  arrived  in 
Kepple  Bay,  crowded  with  men  bound  for  Canoona, 
a  place  about  seventy  miles  up  the  river.  Before 
long  some  fifteen  thousand  had  collected,  but  it  was 
found  that  the  gold  was  to  be  met  with  over  a 
very  small  area  only,  and  many  of  those  who  had 
come  to  the  place,  having  spent  all  their  money  on 
their  outfit  and  passage,  were  unable  to  get  away. 
Amongst  the  crowd  thus  gathered  in  this  isolated 
spot,  far  from  civilisation,  terrible  distress  soon  began 
to  show  itself,  and  for  sometime  the  Fitzroy  River 
was  the  scene  of  wretchedness  and  starvation.  At 
length  the  Governments  of  New  South  Wales  and 


344  THE   COLONY   OF   QUEENSLAND. 

Victoria  took  pity  on  the  unfortunate  miners,  and 
provided  means  of  transport  for  the  destitute  who 
wished  to  leave  the  place.  Some,  however,  at  the 
time  of  greatest  scarcity,  had  taken  up  portions  of 
the  fertile  land  on  the  banks  of  the  river,  and  com- 
menced farming.  From  these  beginnings  sprang 
what  is  now  the  thriving  town  of  Rockhampton. 
The  Government  of  Queensland  was  anxious  to 
attract  some  of  the  immigrants  who  were  coming 
in  large  numbers  to  Australia,  and  offered  rewards, 
ranging  from  £200  to  £1,000,  to  the  discoverers  of 
profitable  gold-fields.  A  great  impetus  was  thus 
given  to  prospecting,  and  during  the  following 
years  many  districts  were  opened  up  by  parties  of 
miners. 

In  1867  a  man  named  Nash,  by  accident,  found 
extensive  gold  deposits  at  Gympie,  a  place  about 
130  miles  from  Brisbane.  Nash  kept  his  dis- 
coveries secret,  and  commenced  to  collect  gold  for 
himself  before  giving  publicity  to  the  news.  He 
soon  procured  several  hundred  pounds'  worth  of  the 
metal,  and  then,  as  it  seemed  impossible  to  avoid  dis- 
covery (as  a  road  ran  close  to  the  spot  at  which  he 
was  at  work),  and  as  it  was  not  improbable  that  some 
one  else  would  forestall  him  in  reporting  the  field, 
he  came  down  to  Maryborough,  and  announcing  his 
valuable  find,  received  the  Government  reward.  A 
rush  to  Gympie  immediately  took  place,  and  the  field 
proved  to  be  exceedingly  rich  ;  a  nugget,  worth 
about  £4,000,  was  found  close  to  the  surface. 
Other  gold-fields  have  also  been  discovered  from  time 
to  time,  Far  to  the  north,  on  the  Palmer  River, 


MOUNT  MORGAN  MINE.  345 

rich  deposits  have  been  found  ;  and,  in  spite  of  the 
hostility  of  natives  and  the  tropical  heat,  great 
numbers  of  miners  are  at  work,  including  thousands 
of  Chinamen. 

But  the  fields  already  described  are  insignificant, 
when  compared  with  the  enormous  yield  of  the 
Mount  Morgan  mine,  which  has  already  paid 
^2,750,000  in  dividends.  It  is  a  huge  mound  of  ore, 
which  is  highly  ferruginous,  and  contains  gold  to  the 
extent  of  several  ounces  to  the  ton,  its  peculiar 
formation,  in  the  opinion  of  the  Government  geologist 
of  Queensland,  being  due  to  the  action  of  the  thermal 
springs.  The  story  of  its  discovery  is  peculiar.  It 
is  situated  near  Rockhampton,  in  the  very  district  to 
which  the  diggers  had  rushed  with  such  ill-luck  in 
1858.  A  young  squatter  had  bought  a  selection 
of  640  acres  from  the  Government,  but  it  was  on  a 
rocky  hill,  and  he  found  that  for  grazing  or  cultiva- 
tion it  was  useless.  Accordingly,  when  the  offer  was 
made  of  £640  by  three  brothers  named  Morgan,  he 
gladly  closed  the  bargain  ;  but  soon  after  the  tran- 
saction the  fortunate  purchasers  found  that  the  dirty 
grey  rocks,  of  which  the  whole  was  composed,  con- 
tained so  much  gold  that  £20  or  £30  worth  of  it 
could  be  extracted  with  rude  appliances  from  every 
cartload  of  stuff.  Work  was  immediately  commenced, 
and  before  long  Mount  Morgan  turned  out  to  be  the 
richest  gold  mine  in  the  world.  A  year  or  two  later 
the  hill  which  had  cost  £640  was  sold  for  ^8,000,000. 
It  is  now  calculated  that  it  is  worth  at  least  double 
that  sum,  and  the  shares  of  the  company  which  pos- 
sess it  have  reached  a  figure  equivalent  to  £18,000,000. 


346       THE  COLONY  OF  QUEENSLAND. 

But  gold-mining  is  not  the  only  industry  which  has 
been  followed  in  Queensland.  In  the  northern  dis- 
tricts tropical  products  are  successfully  grown,  and 
about  1861  the  cultivation  of  cotton  was  commenced. 
No  very  great  progress  was  made  for  the  first  three 
years,  but  when  the  American  war  cut  off  that 
source  of  supply,  the  enhanced  price  of  both 
cotton  and  sugar  (the  cultivation  of  which  was 
commenced  in  1865)  more  than  compensated  for 
the  comparatively  higher  cost  of  white  labour  in 
the  Queensland  plantations.  As  long  as  the  price 
of  cotton  and  sugar  remained  high,  the  question 
of  labour  on  the  plantations  was  not  of  such  impor- 
tance as  to  seriously  interfere  with  the  industries. 
But  when,  on  the  close  of  the  war,  these  articles 
fell  to  their  normal  level,  the  American  product 
again  coming  into  competition,  and  the  planters  of 
Queensland  finding  it  necessary  to  effect  some  radical 
change  in  the  management  of  their  estates,  it  was 
proposed  to  substitute  the  cheap  labour  of  coolies 
from  India  for  the  more  expensive  Europeans  ;  but 
there  were  difficulties  in  the  way,  and  eventually 
Chinese  were  introduced.  They  did  not  come  up 
to  expectations,  and  planters  were  at  their  wits'  end. 
At  length  a  sugar  planter  named  Towns  conceived 
the  idea  of  bringing  labourers  from  the  South  Sea 
Islands,  and  as  he  was  also  the  owner  of  ships 
which  traded  to  the  islands,  he  had  no  difficulty  in 
putting  the  scheme  into  practice.  The  Kanakas  (as 
the  islanders  were  called)  were  apt  pupils,  and  soon 
became  expert  plantation  hands.  They  also  met  all 
requirements  as  to  cheapness,  for  a  few  presents 


KANAKAS   LABOUR.  347 

of    finery    seemed    to    satisfy    them    for    years    of 
labour. 

Towns'  example  was  speedily  followed  by  his 
neighbours,  and  the  practice  of  employing  Kanakas  on 
the  plantations  instead  of  white  men  became  general. 
The  islanders  as  a  rule  made  engagements  for  one  or 
two  years'  service,  and  then  having  received  in  pay- 
ment, cloth,  knives,  hatchets,  beads,  &c.,  to  the  value 
of  about  £10,  were  sent  back  to  the  islands.  A 
system  such  as  this  of  necessity  bred  abuses,  and 
unscrupulous  masters  resorted  to  all  sorts  of  tricks  to 
swindle  the  Kanakas  out  of  their  pay.  Again,  as 
the  demand  for  island  labour  increased,  the  supply 
of  volunteers  was  unequal  to  the  requirements  of 
planters,  and  captains  of  vessels  took  to  wholesale 
kidnapping,  and  to  all  intents  and  purposes  sold 
their  captives  in  Queensland  to  the  plantation  owners 
for  so  much  a  head.  There  were  consequently  fre- 
quent conflicts  between  the  crews  of  labour  vessels 
and  the  inhabitants  of  the  islands.  The  white  men 
would  suddenly  appear  at  the  native  villages  and 
take  as  prisoners  crowds  of  men  and  women  ;  in 
revenge  the  natives,  whenever  they  got  a  chance, 
attacked  the  vessels  visiting  the  islands  and  murdered 
all  they  found  on  board.  All  sorts  of  devices  for 
getting  near  the  natives  were  tried  by  the  kidnap- 
pers. Sometimes  they  disguised  themselves  as 
missionaries,  and  then  when  an  opportunity  occurred, 
on  account  of  the  trust  inspired  by  their  appearance, 
they  fell  upon  their  victims,  and  hurried  them  off  to 
the  ships.  As  a  result,  if  real  missionaries,  sus- 
pecting nothing,  approached  the  islanders,  they  were 


348       THE  COLONY  OF  QUEENSLAND. 

frequently  speared  or  clubbed  to  death,  without  dis- 
crimination. 

The  conflict  in  most  cases  was,  however,  onesided. 
Labour  vessels  cut  down  the  frail  canoes,  and  while 
the  occupants  were  struggling  in  the  water  they  were 
secured,  dragged  aboard,  and  thrust  into  the  hold. 
The  hatches  were  battened  down,  and  when  enough 
of  the  poor  wretches  had  been  crammed  into  the  ship, 
sail  was  set,  and  but  little  attention  was  paid  to  the 
passengers,  who  if  they  survived  the  terrible  passage 
in  the  filthy  and  confined  holds  were  sold  to  the 
planters  or  their  agents.  It  must  not  be  supposed 
that  all  the  planters  engaged  in  the  labour  traffic 
behaved  like  ruffians,  but  nevertheless  such  deeds  as 
those  described  were  of  common  occurrence.  At 
length  these  scandals  so  aroused  popular  feeling  that 
in  1868,  the  Queensland  Legislature  passed  an  Act  to 
regulate  the  island  labour  traffic.  The  Polynesian 
Labourers  Act  provided  that  no  islanders  were  to  be 
shipped  to  the  colony  unless  the  captain  of  the  vessel 
could  produce  a  document,  signed  by  some  respon- 
sible person,  to  the  effect  that  those  whom  he  brought 
had  shipped  without  compulsion.  At  the  same  time 
special  Government  agents  were  appointed  to  ac- 
company every  vessel  engaged  in  the  trade,  and  to 
exercise  a  general  supervision  over  the  islanders  on 
the  voyage.  The  minimum  payment  to  Kanakas  on 
the  termination  of  their  service  was  fixed  at  £6  worth 
of  goods  for  each  year's  work,  and  other  minor 
provisions  were  also  enacted  for  the  general  regula- 
tion of  the  trade. 

These  rules  were  right  enough  as  far  as  they  went, 


POLYNESIAN  LABOURERS  ACT.     349 

but  the  whole  system  was  such  that  it. was  impossible 
to  make  a  law  which  could  not  be  in  one  way  or 
another  evaded.  Without  doubt  the  new  Act  effected 
much  good,  and  the  island  traffic  lost  many  of  its 
most  objectionable  characteristics.  But  frequently 
the  clauses  which  made  it  necessary  for  a  document 
to  be  produced  showing  that  the  Kanakas  were  volun- 
tary immigrants  were  little  but  a  dead  letter.  Nothing 
was  easier  than  to  bribe  the  chief  of  any  tribe  by  a 
present  of  a  few  trinkets,  to  compel  a  certain  number 
of  his  people  to  go  before  a  missionary  and  express 
their  desire  to  ship  to  Queensland,  although  really 
they  may  have  been  most  averse  to  the  proposal. 
Again,  while  the  Government  agent  was  put  to  watch 
the  captain,  and  the  captain  was  only  too  happy  to 
watch  the  agent,  there  was  always  the  danger  of 
collusion,  and  cases  have  been  brought  to  light  in 
which  the  deeds  of  the  crews  of  labour  vessels  have 
been  a  blot  on  our  civilisation.  There  is  evidence, 
however,  that  now  the  abuses  have  been  reduced 
to  a  minimum  ;  one  of  the  best  signs  of  the  great 
improvement  which  has  been  effected  is  that  islanders 
who  have  served  a  term  in  Queensland  very  often 
re-engage  when  the  opportunity  offers,  and  bring  with 
them  their  friends  and  relations.  The  whole  traffic 
is  nevertheless  undesirable,  and  it  is  almost  impos- 
sible, even  with  the  best  intentions,  for  the  Govern- 
ment to  ensure  that  only  volunteers  are  brought  to 
the  colony,  and  —  what  is  more  important  —  that 
expirees  are  sent  back  to  their  proper  destinations. 
It  has  frequently  been  asserted  that  Kanakas  have 
been  landed  at  the  wrong  islands  to  save  trouble, 


350  THE   COLONY  OF  QUEENSLAND. 

and  this  practically  means  handing  them  over  to  be 
murdered  by  hostile  tribes.  The  whole  question  is 
surrounded  with  difficulties,  and  the  proposal  to  re- 
introduce  the  system,  after  a  temporary  suspension, 
is  at  present  calling  forth  an  animated  controversy 
between  its  friends  and  its  opponents.  In  all  branches 
of  material  development  Queensland  has  made  rapid 
progress,  and  under  liberal  land  laws  and  state- 
assisted  immigration  the  population  has  rapidly 
increased.  An  agitation  has  for  some  been  on  foot 
in  favour  of  a  subdivision  of  the  huge  territory,  for 
it  is  hoped  that  in  this  way  the  friction  may  be 
avoided  which  the  very  conflicting  interests  of  the 
North  and  South  must  under  existing  arrangements 
inevitably  produce. 

Like  most  of  the  other  colonies,  Queensland  became 
intoxicated  with  its  own  prosperity,  and  plunged 
headlong  into  extravagance  in  its  public  expenditure, 
but,  although  this  course  has  been  followed  by  the 
usual  reaction,  the  natural  resources  of  the  country 
are  so  enormous  that  the  depression  is  unlikely  to 
be  of  long  duration  or  to  seriously  dim  the  brilliant 
promise  of  the  future. 


NEW   ZEALAND. 
XXVIII. 


FROM   THE   FIRST   SETTLEMENT  TO  THE  RECALL  OF 
GOVERNOR   FITZROY. 

(1791-1846.) 

LONG  before  any  systematic  attempt  was  made  to 
colonise  New  Zealand  there  had  been  intercourse 
between  the  Maori  population  and  the  whaling  ships, 
which  visited  the  coast  in  large  numbers.  As  might 
have  been  expected,  these  meetings  often  led  to  mis- 
understandings, and  the  cruelty  and  immorality  of 
the  sailors  was  fully  counterbalanced  by  the  acts  of 
revenge  perpetrated  by  the  natives,  in  accordance 
with  their  ancient  customs.  Occasionally  large 
numbers  of  passengers  and  seamen  fell  victims  to 
the  misbehaviour  of  earlier  visitors.  Thus,  in  1809, 
a  ship  called  the  Boyd,  on  her  voyage  to  England, 
touched  at  Whangarua,  in  order  to  obtain  spars,  and, 
while  the  captain  and  many  of  the  crew  were  ashore, 
the  Maoris  made  a  descent  upon  them,  and  having 
killed  and  eaten  all  who  were  to  be  found,  attacked 
the  ship,  leaving  only  one  woman  and  three  children 

351 


THE  "BOYD"  MASSACRE.  353 

to  tell  the  tale.  The  survivors,  who  had  hidden 
themselves  when  they  saw  the  Maoris  coming,  were 
eventually  rescued  by  the  crew  of  the  City  of  Edin- 
burgh, aided  by  a  friendly  native  named  Te  Pahi. 
Several  events  of  a  somewhat  similar  character 
attracted  the  attention  of  Australians  and  English- 
men to  the  barbarous  islanders,  and  the  Rev.  Samuel 
Marsden,  the  chaplain  in  New  South  Wales,  urged 
the  establishment  of  a  mission  station  at  the  Bay  of 
Islands,  which  had  been  the  seat  of  most  of  the  out- 
rages, in  the  hope  that  the  missionaries  might  be  able 
to  improve  the  relations  between  the  two  races.  His 
suggestion  was  carried  out,  and  a  small  settlement 
formed,  while  at  the  same  time  one  European  and 
three  chiefs  of  the  native  tribes  were  appointed  magis- 
trates for  the  district,  and  were  instructed  to  use  their 
utmost  efforts  to  diminish  the  continually  recurring 
collisions.  In  spite  of  these  precautions,  murders  and 
other  atrocities  continued.  Every  vessel  that  cruised 
in  New  Zealand  waters  had  boarding  nets,  and, 
should  any  mishap  drive  a  luckless  ship  upon  the 
coast,  the  probable  fate  of  all  on  board  was  only  too 
well  understood.  In  1816  two  ships  were  wrecked 
and  their  crews  killed  and  eaten.  In  1823  the 
Imperial  Parliament  at  last  realised  that  it  was 
necessary  to  take  some  steps  to  mitigate  these  evils, 
and,  in  order  to  control  at  any  rate  the  European 
settlers  and  visitors,  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Supreme 
Court  of  New  South  Wales  was  extended  to  residents 
in  New  Zealand. 

Much  of  the  trouble    which  had  arisen    and  sub- 
sequently   occurred    between    the     two    races    was 

24 


354 


THE   FIRST  SETTLEMENT. 


due  to  the  ignorance  and  want  of  appreciation  of 
the  Maoris  and  their  customs  shown  by  the 
Europeans.  As  a  race  the  natives  were  vastly 
superior  intellectually  to  any  savages  with  whom 
Englishmen  had  previously  been  in  contact  in  the 
Southern  hemisphere.  Guided  largely  by  tribal 
traditions  and  native  customs,  their  actions  were  often 
inexplicable  to  the  white  strangers,  and  as  a  result 


there  were  many  collisions  which  a  better  acquaint- 
ance on  either  side  would  have  prevented.  For 
instance,  it  was  a  gross  offence  to  touch  any  article 
which  was  tapu,  that  is,  which  for  some  reason  had 
been  placed  under  a  ban,  or  which  had  been  declared 
sacred  from  the  touch  or  eye.  Constant  and  un- 
conscious breaches  of  the  Maori  law  were  made  by 
strangers,  and  indeed  it  was  only  by  great  care  that 
they  could  be  avoided.  Any  flagrant  digression 


MAORI  CHARACTER.  355 

demanded  utu,  or  atonement,  which  was  only  pro- 
curable too  frequently  by  the  death  of  the  offender. 

Hence  many  barbarous  and  incomprehensible  acts 
of  apparently  inhuman  revenge,  for  trivial  matters, 
were  perpetrated,  which  in  reality  were  instigated  by 
native  customs  that  the  Maoris  felt  constrained  to 
blindly  obey. 

One  of  the  survivors  of  the  crew  of  a  brig  which 
was  seized  on  the  east  coast  in  1816  was  killed  for 
lending  a  knife  to  a  slave  and  afterwards  breaking 
the  tapu  which  this  had  caused,  by  using  the 
same  knife  to  cut  food  for  a  chief's  mother.  The 
latter  happened  to  die,  and  when  the  facts  were  made 
know  the  tohunga  (priest)  had  no  doubt  that  the 
breach  of  the  tapu  was  the  cause  of  her  decease.  A 
council  of  the  tribe  was  held,  and  the  poor  fellow  was 
sentenced  to  death,  though  the  chief,  who  liked  him 
very  much,  did  his  best  to  save  him.  The  tohunga 
in  an  eloquent  address,  pointed  out  to  the  chief  that 
the  gods  would  never  be  appeased  if  utu  were  not 
exacted  for  breach  of  the  tapu,  and  that  the  lot  of  his 
friend  was  not  really  hard,  for  it  would  be  an  honour 
to  him  to  attend  in  the  next  world  on  so  great  a 
chieftainess  as  the  chief's  dead  mother,  and  to  the 
latter  to  have  such  an  attendant.  The  chief's  family 
pride  and  filial  affection  were  in  this  way  successfully 
appealed  to,  and  the  fate  of  the  poor  wretch  was 
sealed. 

This  case  serves  to  show  much  of  the  Maori 
character.  Superstitious  and  sensitive  to  a  degree, 
they  have  shown  themselves  nevertheless  fearless  and 
in  the  main  honourable  as  a  race.  With  few  excep- 


356  THE  FIRST  SETTLEMENT. 

tions  they  proved  ^as  foes  to  be  worthy  of  the  highest 
admiration,  while  as  allies  they  were  warm  and  true 
friends.  Possessed  of  great  intelligence  and  adapta- 
bility, they  lost  no  .time  in  turning  to  account  the 
lessons  in  civilisation  which  were  to  be  learnt  from 
their  white  visitors.  Hongi  and  Waikato,  the  former, 
perhaps,  the  greatest  of  their  chiefs,  having  been  taken 
to  England  by  one  of  the  missionaries  as  early  as 
1820,  were  made  much  of,  and  loaded  with  handsome 
gifts  ;  but  before  their  return  to  New  Zealand  they 
converted  all  the  presents  which  had  been  showered 
upon  them  into  muskets,  and  at  once  on  landing  in 
their  native  country  started  on  the  war  path  against 
neighbouring  tribes,  with  the  result  that  their  enemies 
fell  easy  victims  to  their  superior  weapons. 

The  extreme  fertility  of  the  islands  had  in  1825 
inspired  persons  in  England  with  a  desire  to  colonise 
them,  and  towards  the  close  of  1826  a  vessel  carry- 
ing sixty  settlers  arrived  under  the  command  of 
Captain  Herd,  who  purchased  two  islands  in  the 
Hauraki  Gulf.  But  fears  of  the  attacks  of  the  natives 
discouraged  the  immigrants,  and  many  of  them  left 
the  country  at  the  first  opportunity.  Their  appre- 
hensions were  not  groundless,  for  in  the  following 
year  Hongi  turned  his  newly  acquired  weapons 
against  those  from  whom  they  had  been  obtained, 
and  destroyed  the  mission  station  at  Whangaroa.  A 
sort  of  guerilla  warfare  had  long  existed,  but  matters 
now  reached  such  a  stage  that  peaceful  occupation  of 
the  country  became  impossible.  There  were  faults 
on  both  sides,  and  in  1831  thirteen  chiefs  appealed 
.to  the  English  Government  for  protection  from  the 


358  THE  FIRST  SETTLEMENT. 

traders  and  settlers,  while  at  the  same  time  the 
Governor  of  New  South  Wales — under  whose  nominal 
protection  New  Zealand  at  that  time  was — suggested 
that  it  would  be  desirable  that  a  Government 
resident  should  be  appointed  without  delay  to  look 
after  the  affairs  both  of  white  men  and  Maoris,  and 
maintain  some  semblance  of  authority.  Accordingly, 
two  years  later,  Mr.  James  Busby  was  appointed 
Resident  at  the  Bay  of  Islands,  and  shortly  after- 
wards Lieutenant  McDonell,  R.N.,  was  sent  in  a 
similar  capacity  to  the  settlement  at  Hokianga. 

As  yet  the  Imperial  Government  had  not  formally 
annexed  the  islands,  although  Cook  had  hoisted 
the  British  flag  when  he  visited  the  country  in  1770, 
and  an  enterprising  foreigner,  known  as  Baron 
Hyppolitus  de  Thierry,  issued  a  declaration  in  1835 
from  the  Marquesas  Islands,  one  of  which  (Nu- 
huneva)  he  had  purchased,  asserting  that  he  was 
"  Sovereign  Chief  .of  New  Zealand  and  King  of 
Nuhuneva."  On  receipt  of  this  rather  remarkable 
news,  Mr.  Busby  at  once  issued  a  counter  address,  in 
which  he  directed  the  attention  of  the  native  chiefs  to 
this  bold  attempt  to  seize  their  country,  and  urged 
them  to  offer  a  combined  front  to  the  usurper.  A 
meeting  of  all  the  principal  chiefs  was  hastily  con- 
vened, and  a  declaration  announcing  the  independence 
of  the  Maoris,  under  the  title  of  the  "  United  Tribes 
of  New  Zealand,"  was  issued.  A  copy  of  this  procla- 
mation was  forwarded  to  the  Secretary  of  State,  who 
in  answer  announced  that  England  would  always 
guard  New  Zealand  from  foreign  aggression. 

But  here  the  responsibility  of  England  ceased,  and 


"THE    UNITED    TRIBES."  359 

although  anarchy  still  in  a  large  measure  prevailed  in 
New  Zealand,  no  attempt  was  made  to  establish  any 
settled  form  of  government.  In  spite  of  their  readi- 
ness to  combine  with  Mr.  Busby  in  protesting  against 
the  claims  of  Baron  de  Thierry,  the  natives  continued 
to  show  hostility  to  the  European  missionaries  and 
traders  ;  and  at  last,  in  1837,  the  Governor  of  New 
South  Wales  despatched  Captain  Hobson  in  the 
Rattlesnake  to  the  Bay  of  Islands  to  examine  into  the 
lawless  occurrences  which  were  alarmingly  frequent 
at  Kororareka,  the  main  settlement.  At  this  spot  a 
considerable  village  had  arisen,  and  there  were  already 
about  a  thousand  white  inhabitants,  while  the  bay  was 
crowded  with  whalers  of  all  nationalities.  Captain 
Hobson  fully  confirmed  the  reports  of  the  unsatis- 
factory position  of  affairs,  but  remedial  action  was 
still  delayed,  until  in  1838  the  inhabitants  of  Korora- 
reka could  wait  no  longer,  and  determined  to  take 
the  law  into  their  own  hands,  and  form  a  sort  of 
vigilance  association  for  the  punishment  of  crime  and 
the  protection  of  life  and  property.  This  brought 
matters  to  a  crisis,  for  the  Imperial  Government  saw 
that  the  time  had  come  when  it  must  either  take  some 
steps  to  create  a  proper  administrative  authority,  or 
must  entirely  abandon  all  pretence  of  protecting  or 
managing  the  settlement. 

But  further  difficulties  were  ahead.  Schemes  for 
colonisation  were  about  this  time  extraordinarily 
popular,  and  a  company  known  as  the  New  Zealand 
Company,  which  afterwards  became  a  great  factor  in 
the  affairs  of  the  colony,  was  formed  in  London  by 
Lord  Durham  to  undertake  the  systematic  settlement 


360  THE   FIRST  SETTLEMENT. 

of  the  unclaimed  territory.  Final  arrangements  were 
completed  by  1839,  and  the  Tory  with  Colonel 
William  Wakefield  and  other  officers  of  the  New 
Zealand  Company  on  board,  sailed  from  London, 
after  a  quick  passage  reached  its  destination  and 
brought  up  in  Queen  Charlotte's  Sound.  The  situa- 
tion did  not  seem  suitable,  so  weighing  anchor  the 
pioneers  sailed  round  to  Port  Nicholson,  where  Wake- 
field  took  possession  of  the  country  in  the  name  of 
the  company,  a  royal  salute  was  fired,  and  the  New 
Zealand  flag  hoisted  to  commemorate  the  event.  The 
natives  apparently  welcomed  the  new-comers,  and  all 
joined  in  a  feast  at  which  the  utmost  goodwill  pre- 
vailed. Colonel  Wakefield,  ignorant  of  Maori  customs, 
and  particularly  of  their  laws  relating  to  the  possession 
of  the  land,  at  once  proceeded  to  acquire  large  tracts 
of  country  in  the  name  of  the  company,  for  the  use 
of  intending  settlers.  Sailing  along  the  coast,  he 
speedily  procured  an  area  of  about  twenty  million 
acres  extending  on  the  west  to  Taranaki,  and  along 
the  east  coast  to  Hawke's  Bay,  at  the  same  time  he 
bought  from  a  chief  named  Rauparaha  the  valley 
of  the  Wairau  in  the  south  island. 

In  these  transactions  was  laid  the  foundation  of 
much  future  trouble.  In  the  honest  belief  that  the 
land  belonged  to  the  chiefs  and  others  who  treated 
with  him,  Wakefield  had  paid  the  price  agreed  upon, 
but  he  was  unaware  of  the  fact  that  each  tribe  had 
its  own  traditional  boundaries,  that  the  customs  with 
regard  to  ownership  were  most  intricate,  and  that  the 
natives  regarded  the  possession  of  the  soil  as  of  the 
highest  importance.  Few  Europeans  at  that  time 


THE   NEW  ZEALAND   COMPANY.  361 

and  for  many  years  afterwards  understood  the  posi- 
tion. The  land  was  held  by  the  natives  upon  a  com- 
munistic basis,  and  though  there  were  rights  of  occu- 
pation belonging  to  individuals,  the  soil  belonged  to 
the  tribes,  and  could  not  be  parted  with  except  upon 
the  authority  of  the  whole.  The  question  of  the 
acquisition  of  land  was  the  cause  of  nearly  all  the 
subsequent  difficulties  with  the  Maoris,  and  their 
tribal  customs  on  the  subject  were  most  difficult  to 
overcome. 

Shortly  after  the  despatch  of  the  Tory,  four  other 
ships  followed  with  a  large  number  of  intending 
settlers.  By  the  following  year  no  less  than  twelve 
hundred  colonists  had  arrived  at  the  port ;  the 
town  of  Wellington  was  subsequently  founded,  and 
a  second  independent  provisional  government  estab- 
lished. When  news  of  the  steps  which  had  been 
taken  by  the  New  Zealand  Company  became  public 
in  London,  there  was  great  consternation  at  the 
Colonial  Office,  and  it  was  at  last  realised  that  it 
would  be  impossible  for  the  Government  to  elude  any 
longer  its  responsibility  with  regard  to  the  colony. 
Hastily  letters-patent  were  prepared,  extending  the 
boundaries  of  New  South  Wales  so  as  to  include  the 
two  islands,  and  Captain  Hobson  was  despatched  to 
hoist  the  Union  Jack  and  take  charge  of  the  settle- 
ment as  Lieutenant-Governor.  As  soon  as  he  had 
landed  he  issued  a  proclamation  inviting  both  British 
subjects  and  native  chiefs  to  meet  him  in  conference 
at  an  early  date,  and  when  they  had  assembled  he 
read  his  commission  and  two  proclamations  issued  by 
the  Governor  of  New  South  Wales,  asserting  the 


362  THE   FIRST   SETTLEMENT. 

Queen's  authority  in  the  colony,  and  the  illegality  of 
any  transactions  in  land  which  had  not  received  the 
confirmation  of  the  Government.  Soon  afterwards 
another  meeting  was  arranged  with  the  chiefs  of  the 
north  island,  at  Waitangi,  Mr.  Busby's  station,  and  a 
draft  treaty  was  presented  to  the  natives  for  signature, 
by  which  the  sovereignty  of  New  Zealand  was  ceded 
to  Great  Britain,  while  in  return  their  proprietary 
interests  in  the  soil  were  fully  preserved,  and  all 
transfers  of  property  to  British  subjects  would  have 
to  be  sanctioned  by  the  Lieutenant-Governor.  It  was 
also  arranged  that  the  pre-emption  of  Maori  lands — 
i.e.,  the  first  right  of  purchase — should  be  vested  in 
the  Crown.  The  treaty  was  largely  signed  by  those 
present ;  and  then  in  order  to  obtain  the  names  of  as 
many  chiefs  as  possible  in  ratification,  it  was  handed 
to  missionaries  and  agents  to  be  carried  through  the 
country  and  submitted  to  all  who  had  not  attended 
the  meeting.  The  Lieutenant-Governor  himself 
visited  Hokianga  and  other  places  for  the  same  pur- 
pose ;  and  on  May  2ist  in  the  same  year  the 
sovereignty  of  the  Queen  was  proclaimed  over  the 
islands,  and  Major  Bunbury  and  Captain  Nias,  R.N., 
hoisted  the  English  flag  at  Cloudy  Bay. 

The  Secretary  of  State  had  been  hastened  in  his 
action  by  fears  of  the  intention  of  the  French  to 
seize  New  Zealand — fears  which  proved  to  be  well 
founded,  for  in  October,  1839,  two  ships,  the  Comte  de 
Paris  and  the  frigate  L'Aube,  had  sailed  for  Akaroa, 
in  the  middle  island,  and  rights  had  been  granted  to 
a  colonisation  company  known  as  the  Nanto-Borde- 
laise.  Captain  Stanley  was  hastily  sent  round  to 


FEAR   OF  FRENCH  COLONISATION.  363 

Akaroa  to  unfurl  the  English  flag  and  take  possession 
before  the  ships  could  reach  the  place,  and  he  had 
only  just  accomplished  his  mission  when  the  French- 
men hove  in  sight. 

During  the  next  few  years  new  settlements  were 
founded  all  over  the  islands,  more  especially  at 
Wanganui,  New  Plymouth,  and  Nelson,  and  in  1841 
New  Zealand  was  proclaimed  an  independent  colony, 
and  Hobson  was  raised  to  the  rank  of  Governor.  He 
survived  his  promotion  however  but  a  short  time,  and 
Captain  Fitzroy  was  appointed  in  his  stead.  Shortly 
before  Fitzroy's  arrival  an  affray  occurred  with  the 
natives  at  Wairau,  arising  out  of  the  purchase  of 
land  previously  referred  to.  Some  surveyors  were 
engaged  in  laying  out  farms  in  the  Wairau  Valley 
when  suddenly  the  chief  Te  Rauparaha,  who  claimed 
the  land,  protested  against  the  progress  of  the  work, 
and  threatened  violence  should  they  attempt  to  pro- 
ceed. Colonel  Wakefield,  persuaded  that  the  com- 
pany's claim  was  good,  appealed  to  the  authorities, 
and  the  police  magistrate  with  a  force  of  police, 
special  constables,  and  others,  made  an  attempt  to 
arrest  the  chief.  The  natives  resisted,  and  the  con- 
stables were  put  to  rout,  seventeen  of  the  surveyors 
and  police  being  massacred,  although  they  offered  to 
surrender  unconditionally.  Amongst  those  slain  was 
Captain  Arthur  Wakefield,  R.N.,  the  leader  of  the 
Nelson  settlement 

A  general  panic  ensued  amongst  all  the  inhabitants 
of  the  district.  This  sudden  outbreak  on  the  part  of 
the  Maoris  had,  moreover,  a  very  serious  effect  on  the 
prospects  of  the  colony  indirectly,  for  the  tide  of 


364  THE  FIRST  SETTLEMENT. 

immigration  which  had  been  steadily  increasing  pre- 
vious to  the  occurrence,  suddenly  ceased,  and  no  one 
could  be  induced  to  come  to  settle  in  a  country  where 
there  was  no  security  for  life  or  property,  and  where 
at  any  moment  they  might  be  attacked  by  what  they 
regarded  as  a  barbarous  race  of  savages.  The  public 
finances  consequently  fell  into  sore  straits,  and  when 
the  new  Governor  arrived  in  December,  1843,  ne 
found  the  treasury  empty  and  already  liabilities  in- 
curred equal  in  amount  to  twelve  months'  probable 
revenue.  But  before  anything  could  be  done  to 
alleviate  the  general  distress,  it  was  necessary  to  take 
some  steps  to  reassure  the  settlers ;  so  the  Governor 
visited  Wellington  and  Nelson,  where  he  made  per- 
sonal inquiries  into  the  Wairau  conflict,  and  to  con- 
ciliate the  natives,  issued  a  proclamation  consenting 
not  to  enforce  the  pre-emptive  right,  granted  to  the 
Government  by  the  treaty  of  Waitangi,  to  purchase 
lands  in  certain  portions  of  the  country.  At  the 
same  time  he  sought  to  appease  the  settlers  by 
issuing  permission  for  private  individuals  to  complete 
bargains  with  the  natives  on  a  minimum  payment  ot 
ten  shillings  an  acre  to  the  Crown ;  and  when  this 
concession  did  not  appear  sufficient,  a  further  reduc- 
tion to  one  penny  per  acre  was  made  in  the  royalty 
demanded.  Several  transactions  were  completed  on 
these  terms,  but  as  this  was  directly  contrary  to 
existing  laws,  the  Imperial  Government  despatched  a 
Special  Commissioner,  Mr.  Spain,  to  inquire  into  the 
whole  land  question,  and  to  open  courts  in  the  colony 
to  decide  claims  and  disputes  with  regard  to  land 
purchases. 


WAR  WITH  HONE  HERE.          365 

The  success  of  the  Wairau  adventure  roused  the 
temper  of  the  native  tribes,  and  though  they  still,  as 
a  rule,  outwardly  appeared  friendly,  and  contented 
with  the  treaty  of  Waitangi,  their  respect  for  the 
power  of  the  white  man  had  vanished,  and  there  were 
evidences  that  it  required  very  little  to  cause  a  repeti- 
tion of  the  outbreak.  Before  long  the  unsettled  feel- 
ing culminated  in  the  north  in  open  war.  Hone 
Heke— a  son-in-law  of  the  great  chief  Hongi,  who 
was  now  dead — had  become  impressed  with  the  sig- 
nificance of  the  flagstaff  and  standard  at  Kororareka, 
as  an  emblem  of  the  authority  of  the  foreigner,  and 
was  urgent  in  his  efforts  to  stir  up  his  followers  and 
allies  to  destroy  the  token,  which  he  assured  them 
would  in  its  downfall  carry  with  it  the  supremacy  of 
the  invader.  Having  collected  a  small  force,  he 
came  down  to  Kororareka,  and  after  waiting  a  couple 
of  days  in  the  neighbourhood,  stole  up  to  the  flag- 
staff and  cut  it  down.  The  matter  was  at  first  looked 
upon  rather  as  a  freak  than  a  direct  menace ;  but  the 
Governor,  without  delay,  sought  reinforcements  from 
New  South  Wales,  and  a  small  detachment  was  sent 
from  Auckland  to  strengthen  the  garrison  at  the 
scene  of  the  disturbance.  Again  the  flagstaff  was 
erected,  and  this  time  guarded  day  and  night  by 
soldiers. 

But  Hone  Heke  was  determined  not  to  be  deterred, 
and  coming  suddenly  upon  the  guard  with  two 
hundred  warriors,  he  defeated  the  soldiers,  and  in 
triumph  carried  off  the  flag.  Further  reinforcements 
were  at  once  sent  up,  as  the  position  appeared  to  be 
becoming  serious.  The  Governor  himself  visited  the 


366  THE  FIRST  SETTLEMENT. 

district,  and  endeavoured  to  explain  to  the  natives 
that  the  intention  of  the  Imperial  Government  was 
entirely  peaceful  ;  but  nevertheless,  as  a  sign  of  his 
displeasure  at  their  action,  he  demanded  the  sur- 
render of  their  weapons.  A  few  complied,  but  Hone 
Heke  scorned  to  take  any  part  in  the  proceedings 
and  made  no  secret  of  the  fact  that  he  would  continue 
his  hostility,  and  would  never  rest  as  long  as  the 
obnoxious  flag  waved  in  the  breeze.  While  these 
events  were  occurring,  a  war-party  visited  Wanganui 
and  made  hostile  demonstrations,  and  a  warship  was 
ordered  round  to  overawe  the  natives. 

The  Governor  meantime  having  done  all  he  could, 
retired  from  Kororareka  to  Auckland,  but  no  sooner 
was  his  back  turned  than  Hone  Heke  again  set  to 
work  to  accomplish  the  downfall  of  the  flagstaff.  He 
sent  a  message  to  the  officer  in  command  that  on  a 
particular  night  he  would  at  once  proceed  to  the  hill 
and  repeat  his  outrage  to  the  symbol  of  British 
authority.  But  the  warning  was  disregarded  and 
made  light  of,  and  although  the  ordinary  watch  was 
kept,  no  special  preparations  were  made  to  meet 
a  sudden  attack.  When,  therefore,  in  the  dead  of 
night,  Hone  Heke's  natives  once  more  climbed  the 
hill,  no  effective  resistance  could  be  offered,  and  the 
obnoxious  flagstaff  fell  under  the  warrior's  axe.  But 
on  this  occasion  Hone  Heke  did  not  confine  his 
attack  to  the  flagstaff.  The  efforts  of  the  guard  to 
defend  their  charge  was  met  by  a  furious  onslaught, 
and  the  whole  of  the  garrison  having  been  utterly 
routed  by  the  Maoris,  the  victors  descended  upon  the 
town,  which  was  set  on  fire.  The  greatest  confusion 


SETTLERS  AT  PORT  NICHOLSON.          367 

followed  ;  but  the  natives  offered  every  assistance  to 
the  settlers  in  saving  their  property  from  the  burning 
buildings,  after  which  the  colonists  retreated  to  the 
ships  in  the  harbour. 

Application  had  been  made  by  the  Governor  for 
reinforcements  from  Sydney,  and  as  the  vessels  from 
Kororareka  entered  Auckland  harbour,  it  was  believed 
that  they  were  the  looked-for  troops.  The  result, 
when  the  truth  became  known,  was  a  panic  amongst 
the  residents,  who  believed  that  Heke  would  at  once 
march  on  the  capital.  But  Waka  Hene,  with  a 
friendly  band  of  natives  kept  the  insurgents  in  check, 
and  shortly  afterwards  the  expected  reinforcements 
arrived.  The  Governor  determined  to  prosecute  at 
once  a  campaign  against  Heke,  and  the  necessary 
forces  were  despatched  to  the  Bay  of  Islands.  After 
several  small  skirmishes  Heke's  strongly  fortified /«/£ 
at  Ohaewai,  was  evacuated,  and  he  and  his  followers 
fled.  This  ended  Heke's  war  for  the  time  being,  and 
the  Governor  was  able  to  turn  his  attention  to  the 
south,  which  was  now  the  scene  of  great  unrest. 

The  natives  had  welcomed  the  new  settlers  at  Port 
Nicholson  ;  but,  as  soon  as  the  latter  proceeded  to 
take  possession  of  the  land  purchased  by  Colonel 
Wakefield,  trouble  arose,  and  in  many  cases  the 
Maoris  refused  to  give  up  possession.  The  attitude 
of  the  natives  was  indeed  such  that  the  settlers  were 
prepared  for  almost  any  emergency,  and  took  every 
possible  precaution  against  an  outbreak.  What  had 
originally  been  a  peaceful  agricultural  settlement  was 
now  surrounded  by  earthworks,  while  the  settlers 
were  drilled  and  formed  into  militia.  But  the 


368  THE  FIRST  SETTLEMENT. 

Governor  feared  that  these  preparations  might  have 
an  irritating  effect  upon  the  natives  and  foibade  the 
assembling  of  settlers  in  large  bodies,  except  under 
the  direction  of  some  responsible  Government  officer. 
This  step,  combined  with  the  general  state  of  appre- 
hension and  financial  stringency,  caused  great  dis- 
content, and  Fitzroy  speedily  became  unpopular.  A 
petition  was  sent  to  the  Imperial  Government  by  the 
Port  Nicholson  settlers,  praying  for  his  recall,  and  the 
Secretary  of  State  for  the  Colonies,  being  impressed 
with  the  necessity  for  a  change,  despatched  Captain 
George  Grey,  who  has  already  been  mentioned  in 
connection  with  South  Australia,  as  his  successor. 


XXIX. 

EVENTS   FROM    1846   TO    1 86 1. 

THE  outlook  when  Grey  arrived  was  not  promising, 
but  he  immediately  applied  himself  with  character- 
istic energy  to  the  task  of  bringing  order  out  of 
confusion.  He  informed  the  Secretary  of  State  of 
his  intention  to  keep  on  friendly  terms  with  the 
principal  chiefs,  who  would,  where  possible,  be  pen- 
sioned and  made  magistrates  in  their  own  districts. 
He  had  about  six  hundred  and  fifty  soldiers  at  his 
disposal  and  authority  to  draw  on  the  Imperial 
treasury  if  necessary,  so  that  he  was  able  to  speedily 
bring  about  an  improvement  in  the  colony's  affairs. 
Direct  purchase  of  lands  from  the  Maoris  by  private 
individuals  was  stopped,  and  sixty  natives  were 
enrolled  under  European  officers  as  a  police  force. 
The  friendly  tribes  under  Waka  Hene  were  granted 
rations,  and  the  Executive  Council  passed  an 
ordinance  prohibiting  the  sale  of  firearms  to  natives. 
This  measure  having  been  adopted,  Grey  issued  a 
proclamation  to  the  natives  to  the  effect  that  all  who 
failed,  when  it  was  in  their  power,  to  render  active  aid 
to  the  Government,  would  be  regarded  as  enemies, 
and  that  neutrality  would  be  construed  as  hostility. 

25  369 


370  EVENTS  FROM   1846   TO   l86l. 

A  few  days  later  active  operations  against  Heke, 
and  another  chief  Kawiti  (who  had  joined  him),  were 
commenced,  with  a  force  of  nearly  twelve  hundred 
men,  including  artillery.  Heke  was  at  Kaikohe  and 
Kawiti  held  a  strong  pall,  known  as  Ruapekapeka, 
which  it  was  necessary  to  capture  at  all  hazards  as  it 
was  of  strategical  importance.  Some  friendly  tribes, 
therefore,  kept  Heke  in  check  while  operations  were 
directed  against  Kawiti,  and,  after  several  unsuccess- 
ful attempts,  one  Sunday  morning  while  the  natives 
within  Ruapekapeka  were  engaged  in  worship,  the 
soldiers  made  an  attack,  and  after  three  hours' 
desperate  fighting  carried  the  fortifications.  There 
were  serious  losses  on  both  sides,  but  Heke,  who  had 
arrived  just  prior  to  the  attack  with  sixty  men, 
escaped.  The  engagement,  however,  was  decisive, 
and  he  and  his  followers  were  scattered  far  and  wide. 
A  garrison  of  two  hundred  soldiers  was  left  at  the 
Bay  of  Islands,  and  Grey  with  the  remainder  of  his 
force  returned  to  Auckland.  This  ended  Heke's  war, 
which  was  the  only  serious  trouble  with  the  powerful 
tribes  north  of  Auckland  ;  as  the  terms  of  peace 
were  generous  Heke  settled  at  Kaikohe,  and  after- 
wards proved  himself  a  warm  friend  of  the  Euro- 
peans. 

Hardly  had  Grey  arrived  in  Auckland  when  news 
was  received  of  fresh  disturbances,  this  time  with  the 
natives  of  the  Hutt  Valley.  He  at  once  hastened 
south  with  five  hundred  soldiers  in  the  hope  that  the 
disorder  might  be  nipped  in  the  bud  by  a  display  of 
force.  The  soldiers  were  therefore  promptly  marched 
up  the  valley  ;  but  the  rebels  under  Rangihaeta,  on 


GOVERNOR   GREY  AND    THE   NATIVES..        371 

the  approach  of  the  troops,  retreated  to  an  inaccessible 
pah,  where  it  was  useless  to  attack  them.  Grey  with- 
drew ;  but  a  strong  garrison  remained  to  guard  the 
settlers.  The  natives  quietly  awaited  a  favourable 
opportunity  for  attack,  and  shortly  surprised  and 
routed  some  fifty  soldiers  who  were  stationed  under 
Lieutenant  Page  at  a  farm  in  the  valley.  Em- 
boldened by  their  success,  a  month  later  they  fell 
upon  a  detachment  of  the  99th  Regiment  which  was 
reconnoitring  their  position,  and  then  began  a  series 
of  murders.  A  general  panic  spread  amongst  the 
colonists  in  the  Wellington  district,  and  some  fled 
to  the  town  while  others  erected  stockades  and 
fortified  their  dwellings.  Meanwhile  Rangihaeta 
never  gave  the  troops  a  chance  of  a  decisive  engage- 
ment, and  always  fell  back  when  they  appeared  in 
strength. 

Amongst  the  friendly  natives  was  the  chief  Raupa- 
raha,  previously  referred  to,  who  was  ostensibly  a 
warm  ally  of  the  Europeans  ;  but  Grey  had  reason  to 
believe  that  he  and  other  chiefs  were  secretly  aiding 
the  insurgents,  and  so  captured  him  and  his  com- 
panions in  perfidy  at  Porirua  and  detained  them  as 
prisoners  on  H.M.S.  Calliope.  This,  as  was  expected, 
had  a  disheartening  effect  on  Rangihaeta,  who  left 
his/<?/£  at  Pahautanui  and  moved  to  the  head  of  the 
Horokiwi  Valley,  a  position  from  which  he  was  easily 
dislodged.  Pursued  from  place  to  place,  his  band 
was  finally  dispersed,  and  the  campaign  brought  to  a 
close. 

Grey  was  now  able  to  devote  his  attention  to 
matters  of  internal  reform.  In  almost  every  depart- 


373  EVENTS  FROM   1846   TO    l86l. 

ment  of  Government,  affairs  were  in  great  disorder,  in 
fact  one  of  the  first  steps  necessary  was  the  repudiation 
of  many  of  the  acts  of  his  predecessor.  He  declared 
void  any  land  purchases  in  which  he  considered  the 
natives  had  been  unfairly  treated,  and  decided  also 
to  cancel  the  Crown  grants  of  several  blocks  issued 
by  Fitzroy,  in  excess  of  2,560  acres,  the  area  prescribed 
by  law  as  the  maximum  amount  to  be  held  by  one 
grantee.  Acts  such  as  these  necessarily  brought  him 
into  collision  with  many  of  the  settlers,  and  more 
particularly  with  the  missionaries  who  had  acquired 
extensive  estates  and  were  consequently  the  principal 
sufferers.  In  a  despatch  to  the  Colonial  Office  he 
expressed  the  opinion  that  the  Imperial  Government 
might  rest  assured  that  these  individuals  could  not 
be  put  in  possession  of  their  land  without  a  large 
expenditure  of  British  blood  and  money,  a  statement 
which  caused  great  excitement  throughout  the 
colony.  The  missionaries,  who  by  this  time  had 
become  a  powerful  class  on  account  of  their  influence 
with  the  natives,  were  indignant.  A  long  and  bitter 
controversy  followed  ;  but  a  test  case,  which  was 
brought  before  the  Supreme  Court,  resulted  in  a 
victory  for  the  Crown,  the  grants  in  excess  of  the 
legal  limit  were  declared  void,  and  much  of  the  land 
in  the  neighbourhood  of  Auckland  consequently 
reverted  to  the  State. 

Grey  now  became  practically  all  powerful  in  the 
country,  and  his  autocratic  acts  brought  him  into 
conflict  with  many  of  the  most  influential  settlers. 
The  colony  was  filled  with  discontent ;  but  under 
his  rule  New  Zealand  made  rapid  progress,  and 


WAR   IN   THE    WARGANUt  DISTRICT.  373 

appeared  to  be  in  a  condition  of  prosperity  and 
peace.  With  the  improved  order  of  things,  speedily 
came  a  rapid  increase  of  population.  But  this  happy 
state  of  affairs  was  not  to  last  long  and  trouble  was 
once  more  experienced  with  the  natives.  This  time 
the  seat  of  disturbance  was  the  Wanganui  district, 
where  Mrs.  Gilfillan  and  four  of  her  children  were 
murdered  by  the  Maoris.  The  town  of  Wanganui 
was  also  attacked,  but  the  natives  were  repulsed  with 
little  loss  on  the  European  side.  Grey  hastened  to 
the  scene.  A  few  miles  above  the  town  six  hundred 
natives  had  entrenched  themselves  ;  but  the  tribes  of 
the  lower  Wanganui  readily  came  to  his  assistance 
and  offered  to  march  against  the  insurgents.  The 
rebels  retreated  before  the  Government  forces  up  the 
river,  to  a  point  beyond  which  it  was  not  considered 
advisable  to  pursue  them,  and  shortly  afterwards  they 
naively  informed  Colonel  McCleverty,  who  was  in 
command  of  the  forces  at  Wanganui,  that  they  could 
not  face  his  artillery,  and  as  there  was  no  use  in  con- 
tinuing the  war,  they  had  decided  to  give  it  up. 

The  threatened  trouble  thus  passed,  and  Grey, 
with  the  intention  of  once  for  all  settling  the  native 
difficulty,  visited  Taranaki,  where  he  found  the 
Maoris  extortionate  and  insolent.  He  was  firm, 
though  reasonable,  in  his  demands ;  he  informed 
them  that  he  should  take  for  the  Queen  all  the  land 
which  he  considered  was  not  required  for  their  use, 
and  appoint  a  commission  to  fix  the  value.  For  the 
time  being  matters  were  smoothed  over,  but  it  was 
only  for  a  time.  Wiremi  Kingi,  a  native  chief  of 
great  influence,  who  had  assisted  to  quell  the  dis- 


374 


EVENTS  FROM   1846   TO   l86l. 


turbances  in  the  Wellington  district,  claimed  ances- 
tral rights  to  land  at  Waitara,  in  the  Taranaki  district, 
and  though  stating  that  it  was  not  his  desire  to  cause 
trouble,  he  expressed  his  intention  of  coming  to  settle 
upon  it.  Accordingly,  in  the  following  year  he,  with 
six  hundred  of  his  tribe,  migrated  to  Waitara,  a  step 


A   MAORI   DWELLING. 

which  subsequently  caused  great  trouble  between  the 
natives  and  the  Government.  At  this  time,  however, 
nothing  unpleasant  resulted  from  his  action,  and 
Grey  was  enabled  once  more  to  turn  his  attention  to 
matters  of  internal  policy. 

A  movement  had  commenced  some  time  previously 


NEW  ZEALAND   GOVERNMENT  BILL.          375 

in  favour  of  responsible  government,  and,  in  1846, 
as  a  result  of  the  agitation,  the  New  Zealand  Govern- 
ment Bill  was  passed  through  the  Imperial  Parlia- 
ment By  this  measure  a  Charter  was  issued 
dividing  the  colony  into  two  provinces,  and  making 
provision  for  the  establishment  of  representative 
institutions.  These  divisions  were  named  New 
Ulster  and  New  Munster;  the  former  comprising 
almost  the  whole  of  the  northern  island,  and  the 
latter  the  country  near  Cook's  Straits,  together  with 
the  middle  and  southern  islands.  Each  province  was 
to  have  a  separate  Executive  Council,  and  a  Lieu- 
tenant-Governor  to  command  under  the  Governor-in- 
chief,  while  a  General  Legislative  Council  was  to 
make  laws  for  the  whole  colony.  On  the  recom- 
mendation of  Grey,  the  operation  of  the  Act  was 
suspended  for  five  years,  though,  as  the  Charter  was 
still  in  force,  the  General  Council  was  called  to- 
gether. It  soon  became  evident  that  the  new  body 
and  the  Governor  could  not  work  in  harmony,  and 
after  two  years  of  stormy  existence,  the  Council 
ceased  to  exist.  There  was  of  course  much  dis- 
appointment at  the  loss  of  autonomy,  when  it  seemed 
so  nearly  in  the  grasp  of  the  inhabitants,  and  the 
agitation  was  continued. 

The  great  improvement  which  was  meantime 
taking  place  in  the  aspect  of  affairs  in  New  Zealand 
had  caused  a  revival  of  the  schemes  for  colonisation, 
and  during  the  next  few  years  numerous  settlements 
were  established  by  associations  formed  in  the  United 
Kingdom.  Most  of  these  enterprises  had  been  con- 
templated sometime  previously,  but  the  trying  ordeal 


376  EVENTS  FROM   1846   TO   l86l. 

through  which  the  colony  had  passed  had  delayed 
their  execution.  At  Otago  400,000  acres  of  land  were 
purchased,  under  the  auspices  of  the  Free  Church 
Association  of  Scotland ;  and  in  1 847  two  ships,  the 
John  Wycliffe  and  Philip  Lang,  dropped  anchor  at 
Port  Chalmers.  Most  of  the  immigrants  who  arrived 
in  these  vessels  were  Scotch  Presbyterians,  and 
Captain  William  Cargill,  of  the  74th  Regiment,  was 
their  leader.  By  their  efforts  the  town  of  Dunedin 
was  founded.  The  Church  of  England  had  its  special 
colonisation  scheme,  and,  with  the  Governor's  sanction, 
obtained  land  in  what  is  now  the  province  of  Canter- 
bury, and  established  the  town  of  Christchurch. 
Colonies  were  also  founded  at  Onehunga,  Tauraki, 
and  other  places,  under  the  direct  supervision  of  the 
Governor,  consisting  entirely  of  military  pensioners 
to  the  number  of  five  hundred,  with  their  wives  and 
families. 

Grey  used  every  effort  to  induce  the  settlers  to 
make  full  use  of  the  great  natural  resources  of  the 
colony.  Phormium  tenax,  the  New  Zealand  flax, 
was  extensively  cultivated,  while  the  changes  made 
by  the  Governor  in  the  price  of  Crown  lands,  whereby 
it  was  reduced  from  ^i  to  los.  or  55.  per  acre,  led  to 
the  establishment  of  small  farms,  more  especially  in 
the  Wairarapa  district.  Commerce  increased  with 
great  rapidity,  and  in  1853  the  first  steam  merchant- 
man entered  New  Zealand  waters.  But  this  period 
of  prosperity  was  interrupted  by  other  and  unlooked- 
for  misfortunes.  First  a  severe  earthquake  in  the 
southern  part  of  the  north  island  frightened  the 
inhabitants,  and  did  considerable  damage  ;  and  then 


MATERIAL   PROGRESS.  377 

the  gold  discoveries  in  California  led  to  an  exodus  of 
some  of  the  best  class  of  settlers,  and  caused  for  a 
time  grave  apprehension  in  the  minds  of  those  who 
had  the  colony's  interests  at  heart.  This  efflux  was 
increased  when  gold  was  found  in  New  South  Wales 
and  Victoria,  and  so  serious  did  the  position  appear 
to  be,  that  a  reward  of  ^500  was  offered  to  any  one 
who  should  discover  a  payable  gold-field  within  New 
Zealand  territory.  In  1852  the  precious  metal  had 
been  met  with  in  small  quantities  at  Coromandel, 
but  no  payable  field  was  found  till  five  years  later. 

The  great  growth  of  the  colony  had  in  the  interim 
made  it  undesirable  that  the  old  charter  which  had  been 
granted  to  the  New  Zealand  Company  should  continue. 
For  some  years  there  had  been  continuous  conflict 
between  the  executive  authority  and  the  officers  of 
the  company,  and  at  last  it  was  determined  by  the 
Imperial  Government  to  take  over  the  whole  of  the 
interests  of  the  company,  and,  in  spite  of  Grey's 
opposition,  the  colony  became  responsible  for  a  debt 
of  ^268,000,  to  meet  the  cost  of  the  transaction, 
which  was  made  a  special  provision  of  the  Constitu- 
tion Act.  Never  before  had  their  relations  with  the 
natives  appeared  to  wear  so  peaceful  an  aspect. 
Both  Heke  and  Rauparaha  had  died,  urging  their 
followers  to  remain  faithful  to  their  compact  with  the 
Europeans,  and  on  all  hands  the  relations  between 
the  two  races  were  most  amicable. 

Meanwhile,  the  movement  in  favour  of  the  estab- 
lishment of  representative  government  had  steadily 
advanced,  and  some  progress  towards  the  attainment 
of  this  end  had  been  made  by  the  granting  of 


378  EVENTS  FROM    1846    TO    l86l. 

municipal  or  "  borough  "  government  ;  the  duties 
assigned  to  which  were  very  large,  and  included  not 
only  the  construction  of  local  public  works,  and  the 
control  of  the  police,  education,  hospitals,  and  charit- 
able institutions,  but  the  establishment  of  sessional 
courts  of  justice  with  limited  jurisdiction,  and  the 
power  to  levy  rates  on  real  and  personal  property  in 
order  to  obtain  the  requisite  funds.  Grey,  who  had 
assisted  in  the  formation  of  this  scheme,  before  long 
saw  the  necessity  for  carrying  it  further,  and  in  1851 
recommended  the  Imperial  Government  to  establish 
an  entirely  new  constitution,  to  replace  that  granted 
previously  under  the  suspended  Act. 

In  1852  a  Bill  was  passed,  which  contained  several 
new  principles,  introduced  by  members  of  the  House 
of  Commons,  who  apparently  had  little  knowledge  of 
the  circumstances  of  the  colony.  By  its  provisions 
the  colony  was  divided  into  five  provinces  ;  each 
province  having  its  own  superintendent  and  pro- 
vincial council.  There  was  to  be  a  General  Legis- 
lature to  deal  with  matters  of  common  concern, 
consisting  of  a  Legislative  Council,  composed  of 
members  nominated  by  the  Crown  for  life,  and  a 
House  of  Representatives  elected  by  the  people  for 
five  years.  The  Provincial  Councils  were  to  be 
elected  by  the  inhabitants,  and  were  to  consist  of  a 
minimum  of  nine  members.  In  1853  the  new  consti- 
tution was  formally  proclaimed,  and  Grey  remained 
just  long  enough  to  see  it  introduced.  After  eight 
years'  service  in  New  Zealand  he  was  transferred 
to  Cape  Colony,  and  his  departure  was  made  the 
occasion  for  a  warm  demonstration  of  esteem,  particu- 


DEPARTURE   OF   GREY.  379 

larly  by  the  natives.  Grey,  in  his  long  administration, 
made  many  enemies,  but  he  certainly  steered  the 
colony  through  a  most  trying  period.  He  had  found 
it  in  the  midst  of  native  troubles,  with  an  empty 
exchequer,  and  a  general  feeling  of  despondency 
pervading  the  settlers  ;  he  left  it  in  a  state  of  perfect 
peace  and  prosperity. 

The  reins  of  government  during  the  initiation  of 
the  new  representative  system  were  by  Grey's  re- 
moval placed  in  the  hands  of  the  officer  commanding 
the  troops,  Colonel  Wynyard,  who  held  office  for 
about  fifteen  months.  The  elections  were  duly  held, 
and  Parliament  met  for  the  first  time  on  May  24, 
1854.  It  was  immediately  seen  that  the  new  consti- 
tution was  not  to  be  received  with  perfect  acclaim  ; 
the  chief  objection  being  that  the  Act  did  not  pro- 
vide that  members  of  the  Executive  Council  should  be 
necessarily  members  of  the  Legislature.  Consequently 
the  existing  council  continued  to  hold  office,  but  none 
of  its  members  held  a  seat  in  either  House,  and  there 
was  thus  no  control  over  the  ministry  by  Parliament, 
except  by  the  refusal  of  supplies.  The  matter  was  a 
subject  of  stormy  debate  when  Parliament  met,  but 
the  acting  Governor  pointed  out  that,  under  the  Con- 
stitution Act,  he  had  no  power  to  supersede  the 
Executive  Council,  which  was  in  existence  before  the 
Act  had  been  passed  ;  but  in  order  to  satisfy  the 
Legislature,  he  added  to  the  executive  three  members 
of  the  House  of  Representatives.  Their  position,  how- 
ever, on  account  of  their  entire  want  of  power,  became 
intolerable,  and  after  seven  weeks  they  resigned. 

At  the  end  of  three  months  nothing  had  been  done 


380  EVENTS  FROM   1846   TO   l86l. 

by  the  new  houses,  and  Wynyard  decided  to  pro- 
rogue Parliament  for  a  short  time,  with  a  promise  to 
urge  the  Imperial  Government  to  pass  a  Bill  enab- 
ling the  appointment  of  responsible  ministers.  With 
the  message  conveying  this  intimation  to  the  house 
came  another  which  it  was  believed  contained  the 
official  notice  of  prorogation,  but  the  first  message 
having  been  read,  the  house  was  moved  into  com- 
mittee nominally  to  consider  it,  but  really  to  prevent 
the  immediate  reading  of  the  second.  A  hot  debate 
ensued,  and  resolutions  were  passed  denouncing  any 
attempt  to  rule  without  the  authority  of  Parlia- 
ment, and  threatening  all  officers  who  should  dare  to 
disburse  money  without  parliamentary  sanction.  The 
doors  of  the  chamber  were  locked  to  prevent  any  one 
from  entering  with  an  open  message  of  prorogation, 
and  one  member  who  was  admitted,  but  was  believed 
to  hold  a  copy  of  the  Gazette  containing  the  proclama- 
tion, was  assaulted  and  declared  guilty  of  contempt. 
Eventually  a  permanent  committee  having  been 
appointed  to  watch  the  proceedings  of  the  Governor 
during  the  recess,  Parliament  was  formally  prorogued 
for  a  fortnight  and  in  the  interval  four  other  members 
of  the  house  were  added  to  the  Executive  Council. 

When  Parliament  assembled  again,  Wynyard  in- 
timated that  it  was  proposed  to  make  certain  altera- 
tions in  the  Constitution  Act,  though  no  change  was 
suggested  in  regard  to  the  Executive  Council.  An 
amendment  on  the  address  in  reply  was  carried  by 
twenty-two  votes  to  four  declaring  that  the  house 
had  no  confidence  in  a  mixed  executive  of  the  kind 
of  men  in  office,  and  the  four  new  ministers  after 


TARANAKI  DIFFICULTIES.  381 

holding  their  seats  three  days  resigned.  Having  thus 
protested,  members  set  seriously  to  work,  and  before 
the  commencement  of  the  following  session  Wyn- 
yard  had  received  authority  to  accept  a  responsible 
ministry,  on  condition  that  the  old  executive  were 
granted  pensions,  to  which  they  were  entitled  by 
Imperial  regulations.  After  a  short  session,  there- 
fore, Parliament  was  dissolved  with  a  view  to  enab- 
ling the  constituencies  to  express  their  views  on  the 
subject  of  the  appointment  of  responsible  ministers. 

Colonel  Gore  Browne  was  appointed  Governor  in 
1855  ;  he  had  only  been  in  New  Zealand  a  very 
short  time  when  trouble  with  the  Taranaki  natives 
once  more  arose.  A  number  of  the  Taranaki  Maoris 
had  formed  a  league,  binding  themselves  not  to  sell 
land  to  Europeans,  and  consequently  quarrels  between 
the  two  races  became  common.  Things  were  further 
complicated  by  other  natives  who,  being  willing  to 
dispose  of  their  land,  fell  out  with  the  league ; 
these  coming  into  conflict,  several  intertribal  fights 
occurred.  But  Wiremi  Kingi  guaranteed  that  no 
European  should  suffer  in  consequence,  and  the 
Government  did  not  interfere.  The  neutrality  of  the 
Governor  in  these  disputes,  however,  was  regarded  by 
the  settlers  as  evidence  of  an  intention  on  his  part  to 
prevent  the  colonists  from  acquiring  land,  and  caused 
widespread  discontent.  Browne  visited  Taranaki,  but 
failed  to  reconcile  the  hostile  tribes,  and  reported  to 
the  Colonial  Office  that  the  Maoris  regarded  the  new 
Parliament  with  distrust,  and  that  in  the  existing 
state  of  affairs  troops  to  the  number  of  1,600  and 
a  man-of-war  were  necessary,  as  he  foresaw  danger. 


382  EVENTS   FROM    1846    TO    l86l. 

The  result  of  the  constant  conflicts  between  the 
natives,  and  the  desire  on  the  part  of  some  of  them 
to  combine  for  defence  against  the  increasing  power 
of  the  pakeJia  led  at  this  time  to  the  initiation  of  a 
new  movement  amongst  them,  afterwards  known  as 
Kingism,  which  commenced  without  any  apparent 
disloyalty,  but  eventually  developed  into  a  serious 
cause  of  trouble.  Some  of  the  most  important  chiefs 
saw  that  the  new  constitution  made  no  provision  for 
the  representation  or  internal  government  of  the 
Maoris  themselves,  though  power  was  given  to  deal 
with  all  matters  between  natives  and  Europeans  ;  and 
as  they  considered  that  their  chiefs  were  not  receiv- 
ing that  deference  and  appreciation  which  their  mana 
entitled  them  to  and  that  the  nationality  of  their 
people  was  being  undermined,  a  meeting  was  held 
in  1856  to  discuss  proposals  for  establishing  a  king- 
ship over  the  natives.  No  immediate  action  followed, 
but  soon  afterwards  while  their  dignity  was  still 
suffering,  Wi  Tamihana,  one  of  the  greatest  and 
most  intelligent  of  the  chiefs,  went  to  Auckland  to 
interview  the  Governor  with  the  object  of  obtaining 
a  small  loan  to  put  up  a  flour-mill.  Instead  of  meet- 
ing with  a  warm  personal  reception,  as  his  rank  would 
have  commanded  from  previous  Governors,  every- 
thing was  done  through  the  new  native  department ; 
and  not  only  was  the  loan  refused,  but  he  did  not  see 
the  Governor  at  all.  This  brought  matters  to  a  head. 
The  dignity  of  the  rangitira  was  offended,  and  the 
natives  saw  in  the  action  of  the  Governor  a  step 
towards  their  disintegration  as  a  nation. 

Wi  Tamihana  sent  to  the  Waikato  chiefs,  informing 


w  .« 
£  s 


384  EVENTS  FROM   1846   TO   1 86 1. 

them  that  his  tribe  had  determined  to  make  Te 
Whero  Whero  their  king,  and  asking  them  to  join 
in  the  movement.  The  selection  was  good,  for  Te 
Whero  Whero,  one  of  the  oldest  and  best  friends  of 
the  Europeans,  was  a  chief  of  the  highest  rank,  of 
large  influence,  and  renowned  amongst  the  Maoris  as 
a  man  of  great  wisdom.  The  movement  was  taken 
up  readily  by  Te  Heu  Heu,  Renata,  and  other 
friendly  leaders,  and  was  regarded  by  those  Euro- 
peans best  able  to  form  an  opinion  as  implying  no 
disloyalty.  But  the  matter  assumed  great  importance 
in  official  eyes,  and  the  Governor  went  to  meet  Te 
Whero  Whero  at  Rangiriri.  Here  a  large  native 
meeting  was  held  shortly  afterwards,  and  the  old 
chief  told  the  Governor  frankly  that  he  believed  they 
must  have  a  king  or  some  central  authority  amongst 
themselves  to  uphold  the  law  ;  but  he  also  asked  for 
a  native  magistrate  to  guide  and  teach  them. 

At  a  subsequent  meeting,  it  was  decided,  after  a 
great  deal  of  talking,  that  Te  Whero  Whero  should 
be  appointed  king,  and  Mr.  F.  D.  Fenton,  who  was 
present  to  represent  the  Governor,  was  appointed  to 
establish  a  suitable  local  government  system  amongst 
the  Maoris  and  to  act  as  resident  magistrate  at 
Whangaroa.  Unfortunately  there  was  a  conflict  of 
authority  and  opinion  between  Mr.  Fenton  (as  the 
representative  of  the  Governor)  and  the  native  de- 
partment of  the  executive,  and  much  was  done  which 
rendered  that  gentleman's  work  nugatory.  For  in- 
stance, he  was  sent  to  the  Waikato  country  but  with- 
out instructions  to  consult  Te  Whero  Whero,  although 
obliged  to  pass  near  to  Te  Whero  Whero's  village 


THE  "  KING  "  MOVEMENT.  385 

on  his  way,  and  the  old  chief  regarded  this  as  a  direct 
and  intentional  slight  to  himself.  He  therefore, 
though  then  and  to  the  day  of  his  death  receiving  a 
pension  from  the  Government,  openly  accepted  the 
kingship  under  the  title  of  Potatau.  He  was  in- 
stalled at  Ngaruawahia  with  much  native  ceremony, 
and  many  of  the  tribes  sent  in  their  submission. 

The  news  of  the  appointment  of  the  king  came 
during  the  sitting  of  Parliament,  and  was  variously 
received.  Amongst  those  who  more  clearly  com- 
prehended the  native  mind,  it  was  understood  to 
be,  as  intended,  a  movement  to  build  up  a  greater 
national  feeling  amongst  the  Maoris,  and  to  establish 
a  self-governing  system  under  the  supreme  authority 
of  the  Governor,  with  a  special  desire  for  some 
central  point  to  which  they  might  appeal  in  land 
disputes  and  other  matters.  But  the  Governor,  who 
was  an  old  Indian  officer,  thought  otherwise,  and 
being  badly  advised,  treated  the  movement  as  hostile. 
It  is,  however,  a  matter  of  fact  that  from  this  time 
the  tribal  disputes  and  incessant  feuds  ceased,  the 
natives  acted  more  as  one  nation  and  their  aspira- 
tions appeared  to  turn  towards  a  higher  civilisation 
upon  European  models.  At  the  same  time  there 
were  undoubtedly  those  amongst  the  natives  who 
desired  to  prohibit  entirely  the  sale  of  land  to 
Europeans  and  to  combine  the  Maoris  for  aggressive 
purposes.  Meanwhile  the  restrictions  imposed  by 
Grey  on  the  sale  of  firearms  to  the  natives  were 
removed  on  the  plea  that  they  induced  smuggling, 
and  the  Maoris  eagerly  took  advantage  of  the  con- 
cession and  bought  all  the  arms  they  could  obtain. 

26 


386  EVENTS   FROM   1846   TO    l86l. 

Some  intertribal  disputes  occurred  about  this  time 
between  a  party  headed  by  one  Ihaia,  and  another 
under  a  chief  named  Katatore — who  was  aided  by 
Wiremi  Kingi — in  connection  with  the  Waitara  lands 
in  Taranaki.  The  settlers  sided  with  Ihaia,  who  was 
willing  to  sell  his  land,  and  desired  the  Governor  to 
put  an  end  to  the  trouble  by  supporting  his  claims. 
But  Governor  Browne  sought  a  solution  of  the  difficulty 
by  offering  to  convey  Ihaia  and  his  people  to  the 
Chatham  Islands.  Ihaia  at  first  agreed,  but  afterwards 
refused,  and  having  made  peace  with  Kingi  settled  on 
land  some  fifteen  or  twenty  miles  from  the  Waitara 
River.  The  colonists  still  pressed  the  Government 
to  acquire  land  for  settlement,  but  Browne  on 
the  advice  of  Bishop  Selwyn  (who  was  highly 
respected  by  the  natives),  Chief  Justice  Martin,  and 
other  men  of  special  experience,  came  to  the  con- 
clusion that  much  harm  would  be  done  by  any 
attempt  to  take  possession  by  force,  and  therefore 
declined  to  interfere. 

After  a  time,  Browne  again  visited  Taranaki,  and 
expressed  his  willingness  to  purchase  land,  and  at  a 
meeting  of  a  friendly  character  with  the  natives,  one 
Teira  came  forward  and  offered  to  sell  certain  land 
on  the  south  bank  of  Waitara  ;  whereupon  Wiremi 
Kingi  rose  and,  stating  that  the  land  was  under  his 
authority,  declined  to  agree  to  the  purchase  ;  he  then 
at  once  withdrew.  His  action  was  taken  as  indi- 
cating want  of  respect  to  the  Governor,  although 
it  was  simply  a  Maori  method  of  showing  that 
the  matter  was  at  an  end,  and  that  further  dis- 
cussion was  useless.  The  Governor  was  urged  to 


MARTIAL  LAW  PROCLAIMED.  387 

maintain  his  own  authority  and  assert  the  Queen's 
sovereignty,  and  was  influenced  by  these  repre- 
sentations. The  right  of  Wiremi  Kingi  to  pro- 
hibit the  sale  was  disallowed,  though  the  Maoris 
asserted  that  he  had  a  mana  over  the  land,  which, 
however,  Teira  in  accordance  with  Maori  usage,  had 
the  right  to  occupy.  Thus  a  combination  of  ignor- 
ance of  native  customs  and  a  mistaken  sense  of 
dignity  once  more  led  to  a  war,  which  might  easily 
have  been  averted  by  the  exercise  of  a  little  tact. 
Investigation  a  few  years  later  showed  that  Kingi 
had  acted  perfectly  within  his  rights,  and  that  Teira's 
action  was  taken  out  of  revenge  over  a  domestic 
matter. 

The  Governor  directed  the  survey  of  the  block 
to  be  made,  but  when  three  months  later  the  sur- 
veyors set  to  work  they  were  driven  off  the  land, 
not  violently,  but  by  a  crowd  of  the  ugliest  and  most 
objectionable  old  women  of  the  tribe  who  kissed  and 
hugged  them  till  they  fled,  and  then  destroyed  their 
pegs,  and  obliterated  the  boundary  lines.  Governor 
Browne,  after  consulting  his  ministers,  thereupon 
proclaimed  martial  law  in  Taranaki,  and  possession 
was  taken  of  the  land  by  the  military.  The  Maoris 
demanded  an  inquiry  into  the  circumstances,  but  the 
Governor,  considering  that  the  question  was  now  one 
of  the  Queen's  sovereignty,  which  must  be  vindicated, 
declined.  Passive  resistance  was  at  first  offered 
by  Kingi's  people,  but  at  last  they  erected  a  pah 
on  the  land,  which  was  bombarded  and  eventually 
abandoned.  Murders  by  the  natives  took  place  as 
was  usual  at  the  commencement  of  a  war,  and  the 


THE  FIRST  ENGAGEMENT.  389 

military  and  local  volunteers  were  speedily  in  the 
field. 

The  first  engagement  occurred  at  Waireka,  where, 
owing  to  the  assistance  of  sailors  from  H.M.S.  Niger, 
a  pah  was  captured,  A  great  meeting  of  the 
Waikatos  was  meanwhile  held  at  Ngaruawahia,  at 
which  sympathy  with  Kingi  was  shown,  the  opinion 
being  generally  expressed  that  the  Governor  should 
have  held  an  inquiry  before  acting  as  he  had  done. 
Sympathy  with  Kingi  spread  rapidly,  and  troops  were 
brought  from  various  quarters  in  anticipation  of  an 
open  rebellion.  A  severe  repulse  was  met  with 
before  Puketekauere,  and  the  troops  in  Taranaki 
were  consequently  increased  to  a  strength  of  nearly  two 
thousand.  Owing  to  the  difficulty  of  transport  in  a 
wild  country  without  roads,  no  active  operations  were 
instituted  until  further  reinforcements  had  arrived 
from  India  and  China.  Anxiety  was  felt  meanwhile, 
as  to  the  position  which  would  be  taken  up  by  the 
Waikatos,  and  at  the  invitation  of  the  Governor  a 
great  meeting  of  the  chiefs  was  called  at  Kohim- 
arama,  near  Auckland  ;  not  one  half  the  number 
invited  came,  the  chiefs  holding  commanding  posi- 
tions in  the  Waikato  country  being  absent,  while  of 
those  present  the  Ngapuhis  alone  declared  open 
hostility  to  Kingi.  At  this  meeting  resolutions  were 
nevertheless  carried  expressing  the  determination  ot 
those  tribes  which  were  represented  not  to  join  in  the 
Kingi  movement,  though  the  war  was  denounced  by 
many  of  them  as  hasty  and  unjust. 

Potatau  died  just  prior  to  this  meeting  and  his  son, 
Matutaera,  who  adopted  the  name  of  Tawhiao,  became 


390  EVENTS   FROM   1846    TO    l86l. 

king  in  his  stead.  Though  the  supply  of  arms  and 
ammunition  to  the  Maoris  had  again  been  prohibited, 
they  were  already  pretty  well  supplied.  General 
Pratt  having  arrived  to  take  command,  hostilities  were 
resumed  at  Taranaki.  A  strong  pah,  erected  by  the 
natives  at  Mahoetahi,  was  stormed  by  a  force  of  about 
one  thousand  five  hundred  troops  and  volunteers,  and 
a  complete  defeat  inflicted  upon  the  natives.  Pahs  at 
Matarikoriko  and  Huirangi  were  then  attacked,  and 
as  usual  abandoned  when  untenable,  and  General  Pratt 
seeing  that  with  the  force  at  his  disposal  it  would  be 
impossible  to  completely  stamp  out  the  insurrection, 
which  was  increasing  in  its  proportions,  declined  to 
move  further  south  unless  provision  were  made  to 
secure  him  from  attack  on  the  Waikato  side.  For 
this  purpose  he  asked  for  five  thousand  men,  irres- 
pective of  garrisons.  During  the  lull  which  followed, 
the  Maoris  again  occupied  Waireka  and  other  old 
f>ahst  and  operations  on  a  large  scale  were  carried  out 
to  dislodge  them. 

Some  of  the  fortifications  they  had  erected  were  of 
very  great  strength,  and  chosen  with  a  keen  appre- 
ciation of  their  strategical  value,  notably  those  at 
Paketekauere  and  Pukirangiora.  But  only  that  at 
Pukirangiora,  which  was  defended  by  a  strong  force 
under  the  chief  Hapurona,  offered  any  lengthened 
resistance.  A  sap  seven  miles  in  length  was  con- 
structed as  being  the  only  means  by  which  the 
fortifications  could  be  approached  on  account  of  the 
inaccessible  character  of  the  country,  and  several 
encounters  took  place  before  the  pah.  Eventually 
Hapurona  hoisted  a  flag  of  truce,  with  a  view  if 


392 


EVENTS  FROM  1846  TO  1861. 


possible  to  bringing  about  peace,  and  accepted  the  con- 
ditions offered  him  by  the  Governor.  These  included 
a  promise  to  investigate  the  title  of  the  Waitara 
land — as  to  which  the  decision  of  the  Governor  was 
to  be  final — while  all  plunder  was  to  be  restored  and 
the  natives  were  to  submit  to  the  authority  of  the 
Queen.  Kingi  did  not  decline  the  terms  offered  to 
Hapurona  but  held  aloof,  and  went  with  his  people 
to  the  Waikato.  General  Cameron  had  meanwhile 
come  to  relieve  General  Pratt,  and  for  the  time  being 
the  Taranaki  war  was  at  an  end.4 


XXX. 


THE  END  OF  THE  MAORI  WARS. 
(1861-1871.) 

GENERAL  BROWNE  opened  up  negotiations  with 
the  Waikato  chiefs,  but  they  insisted  as  a  first  con- 
dition that  the  Waitara  question  should  be  settled 
by  law,  and  this  the  Governor,  regarding  the  matter 
as  one  affecting  the  Queen's  sovereignty,  refused.  He 
stated,  moreover,  that  Kingi  and  those  who  obeyed 
him,  were  rebels  who  had  forfeited  all  rights,  and  he 
would  not  listen  to  any  of  the  terms  proposed.  An 
increase  of  troops  was  asked  for,  so  that  there  might 
be  in  the  colony  five  thousand  men  in  addition  to 
all  garrisons  ;  and  in  May,  1861,  a  new  proclamation 
to  the  Waikatos  was  issued  in  which  the  Governor 
charged  them  with  breaking  the  treaty  of  Waitangi, 
by  setting  up  a  king,  and  required  from  them  uncon- 
ditional submission  to  the  Queen,  restitution  of  all 
plunder,  and  compensation  to  the  settlers  for  their 
losses.  The  Waikatos,  through  Wi  Tamihana,  depre- 
cated forcible  and  hasty  action,  and  deplored  the 
manner  in  which  the  Governor  had  commenced 


394      THE  END  OF  THE  MAORI  WARS. 

operations  at  Taranaki.  A  petition,  signed  by  175 
chiefs,  was  presented  to  the  Governor,  denying  their 
disloyalty,  and  asking  for  a  judge  to  inquire  into  the 
cause  of  the  disagreements.  Strong  representations 
were  also  made  to  the  Governor  by  Europeans  averse 
to  hastening  into  a  war  with  the  Waikatos,  but  his 
answer  was  clear  and  unmistakable.  He  informed 
the  settlers  that  they  must  do  as  the  Taranaki  settlers 
had  done,  and  remove  their  goods  and  families  from 
danger. 

These  troubles  came  in  the  midst  of  disputes  with 
the  Imperial  Government,  as  to  the  conditions  upon 
which  troops  should  be  provided,  and  before  any 
settlement  was  arrived  at  news  was  received  of  the 
recall  of  Governor  Browne  and  the  re-appointment  of 
Sir  George  Grey.  Grey  found  on  his  return  that  a 
great  change  had  taken  place  in  the  circumstances  of 
the  colony  since  his  departure,  and  that  consequent 
upon  the  influx  of  population,  a  new  order  had  arisen 
who  did  not  understand  the  Maoris — who  indeed 
themselves  were  also  changed — and  that  the  south 
island,  which  was  unaffected  by  the  wars,  was  most 
densely  peopled.  He  went  resolutely  to  work  ;  the 
Imperial  Government  placed  six  thousand  soldiers  at 
his  disposal,  and  these  he  employed  in  making  roads 
through  the  Hunua  forest  which  lay  between  Auck- 
land and  the  Waikato  country,  where,  in  the  event  of 
war,  operations  must  be  carried  on.  The  road, 
though  regarded  with  suspicion  by  the  Maoris 
whose  confidence  the  Governor  made  strenuous  efforts 
to  regain,  was  deemed  indispensable.  Browne's 
manifesto  was  quietly  set  aside,  and  the  chiefs  were 


RE-APPOINTMENT  OF  SIR   GEORGE  GREY.     395 

given  to  understand  that  military  operations  would 
only  be  adopted  as  a  last  resource. 

The  north  island  was  divided  into  twenty  native 
districts,  and  these  again  into  hundreds,  while  native 
assessors  and  magistrates  were  appointed,  with  a  civil 
commissioner  to  preside  over  each  district.  Twelve 
persons  were  to  be  nominated  for  approval  by  the 
Governor  as  a  Maori  district  council,  and  native 
owners,  after  the  boundaries  had  been  duly  settled, 
were  to  have  power  to  dispose  of  their  land  to 
Europeans,  but  for  the  time  being  only  to  the  extent 
of  one  farm  in  each  of  the  hundreds.  The  purchaser 
was  also  to  be  recommended  by  the  natives,  and 
approved  by  the  Governor. 

The  new  institutions  were  successfully  started  north 
of  Auckland,  but  in  the  Waikato  district  the  reforms 
were  coldly  received  by  the^  Maoris.  Wi  Tamihana 
suggested  that  a  better  course  would  be  to  have  the 
laws  made  by  the  Runanga  (native  council)  confirmed 
by  the  king,  and  then  submitted  to  the  Governor  for 
approval.  Grey,  somewhat  surprised,  visited  the 
Maoris,  and  found  among  them  an  utter  distrust  in 
the  Government.  He  now  was  confronted  by  the 
difficulty  arising  from  divided  authority,  for  although 
under  the  Constitution  he  was  still  supreme  in  all 
matters  affecting  native  affairs,  he  could  not  proceed 
without  funds ;  these  had  to  be  obtained  from  his 
ministers,  who  disagreed  with  his  policy,  and  were 
disinclined  to  help  him. 

In  the  meantime  Grey's  efforts  at  conciliation  were 
bearing  fruit,  and  it  is  probable  that  if  he  had  been 
able  to  proceed  the  king's  authority  would  soon  have 


396  THE  END   OF   THE   MAORI   WARS. 

disappeared.  But  to  add  to  his  embarrassment  the 
Imperial  Government  complained  of  the  inactivity  of 
the  troops,  who  were  still  employed  in  making  a 
military  road  to  the  stream  Maungatavvhiri,  which 
was  the  boundary  of  the  King  country,  and  beyond 
which  they  could  not  go  without  entering  native 
lands.  Peremptory  instructions  were  also  received 
from  the  War  Office  that  no  further  sums  were  to  be 
paid  from  the  military  chest  on  any  pretext  what- 
ever, so  that  the  expense  of  the  war,  if  it  was  carried 
on,  must  fall  upon  the  shoulders  of  the  colonists 
themselves.  Grey  made  a  last  attempt  to  meet  the 
natives  personally,  and  entered  their  country  to  inter- 
view the  king.  He  met  a  number  of  influential 
chiefs,  including  Tamihana,  and  during  the  dis- 
cussion he  informed  them  that  he  would  not  fight 
the  king  with  the  sword,  but  would  dig  round  him 
till  he  fell  of  his  own  accord.  This  statement 
the  Maoris  construed  as  showing  hostility,  and, 
when  added  to  the  intention  expressed  by  Grey  of 
putting  a  steamer  on  the  Waikato  river,  it  increased 
their  distrust.  Differences,  which  afterwards  became 
almost  an  open  rupture,  also  arose  between  General 
Cameron  and  the  Governor.  At  length  the  series  of 
cross  purposes  and  misunderstandings  reached  a 
climax.  The  Governor,  pending  the  settlement  of 
the  dispute  about  the  Waitara  block  in  the  Taranaki 
district,  had  given  the  Maoris  temporary  possession 
of  the  Tataraimaka  block,  and  when,  after  full  in- 
vestigation, he  was  assured  of  the  genuineness  of 
Kingi's  statements  regarding  the  Waitara  block,  he 
decided  to  restore  the  latter  to  the  owners.  At  the 


RUPTURE   BETWEEN  GREY  AND   CAMERON.   397 

same  time,  as  an  indication  of  his  authority,  he  took 
possession  of  Tataraimaka,  with  one  hundred  men, 
intending  to  hand  over  the  other  block  immediately. 

As  ill-luck  would  have  it,  his  ministers  chose  this 
moment  to  assert  themselves,  and  consequently  some 
delay  occurred  in  regard  to  the  latter  step,  a  delay 
which  proved  fatal  to  the  peace  of  the  colony.  The 
natives,  misinterpreting  Grey's  action  in  regard  to 
Tataraimaka,  took  it  as  a  declaration  of  war,  and, 
gathering  in  the  Taranald  district,  suddenly  attacked 
a  small  party  of  soldiers  who  were  passing  from  one 
block  to  the  other,  and  killed  all  but  one  of  them. 
This  of  course  brought  matters  to  a  head.  The 
Governor  demanded  either  that  the  ministry  should 
take  full  control  of  native  affairs,  or  that  he  should  be 
granted  the  power  and  funds  to  carry  out  a  campaign. 
While  the  Governor  and  his  advisers  were  thus 
squabbling  war  began.  The  first  blows  were  struck 
in  Taranaki,  and  the  insurgents  were  defeated  with 
heavy  loss  at  Katikara.  Operations  were  then  trans- 
ferred to  the  Waikato  district,  and  all  Maoris  not 
willing  to  declare  their  allegiance  were  forced  behind 
the  Maungatawhiri  stream,  action  which  induced 
many  to  enter  the  King  country  rather  than  desert 
their  countrymen.  The  natives  generally  were  in  a 
wild  state  of  excitement,  though  some  of  the  chiefs, 
and  notably  Wi  Tamihana,  did  all  in  their  power  to 
prevent  war. 

At  length,  on  July  12,  1863,  General  Cameron 
crossed  the  Maungatawhiri,  and  on  the  i/th  there 
was  fighting  at  Koheroa,  from  which  the  Maoris  were 
driven  with  considerable  loss.  War  was  now  openly 


398       THE  END  OF  THE  MAORI  WARS. 

declared,  and  Tamihana,  no  longer  able  to  resist  the 
course  of  events,  threw  in  his  lot  with  his  own  people. 
In  anticipation  of  the  crisis,  every  possible  means  had 
been  adopted  to  increase  the  European  forces.  Re- 
cruiting officers  were  sent  to  Australia,  troops  came 
from  India,  and  twenty  thousand  men  of  all  arms  and 
services  were  speedily  available.  Several  steamers 
were  placed  on  the  Waikato  river,  and  the  colony  was 
fairly  launched  upon  its  greatest  and  most  momentous 
struggle  with  the  native  races.  The  Maoris  were  no 
mean  foes,  and  with  great  bravery  prosecuted  a 
guerilla  warfare  both  in  the  Auckland  and  Taranaki 
districts.  Galloway,  a  redoubt  twenty  miles  from 
Auckland,  and  to  the  rear  of  the  base  of  operations, 
was  attacked,  but  the  natives  were  gradually  driven 
back,  and  the  campaign  was  confined  almost  ex- 
clusively to  the  Waikato  district. 

Parliament  met  and  considered  the  position,  and  a 
vigorous  war  policy  was  agreed  upon.  It  was  decided 
— in  opposition  to  Grey's  advice — that  two  and  three- 
quarter  million  acres  of  land  in  the  disturbed  districts 
should  be  confiscated,  and  that  a  loan  of  £4,000,000 
should  be  raised  to  defray  the  charges  of  the  war. 
Several  minor  skirmishes  followed  Koheroa,  and  on 
the  3Oth  of  October  General  Cameron  took  his  first 
important  step.  An  attack  both  from  the  river  and 
the  shore  was  planned  on  the  pah  at  Rangiriri,  a 
strongly  entrenched  position ;  and — although  a  bril- 
liant defence  was  offered  by  the  natives,  and  no  less 
than  124  Europeans  were  killed  or  wounded— 
during  the  night  the  Maoris  retreated.  A  large 
number  of  prisoners,  taken  by  Cameron,  were  placed 


ATTACK  ON  RANGIRIRL  399 

on  the  island  of  Kawan,  but  they  subsequently 
escaped  to  the  mainland.  A  strong  line  of  redoubts 
was  now  thrown  across  the  country,  and  General 
Cameron  hemmed  in  the  natives.  The  Governor, 
now  seeing  the  victory  in  his  hands,  desired  to  make 
a  generous  peace,  but  his  ministers  objected,  con- 
sidering that  a  decisive  blow  should  be  struck  while 
the  opportunity  was  there. 

A  long  and  acrimonious  controversy  followed,  but 
nothing  came  of  Grey's  proposals,  and  operations 
were  resumed  with  vigour.  The  natives  were  driven 
from  one  position  to  another,  until  the  crowning  con- 
flict of  the  Waikato  war  took  place  at  Orakau,  where 
three  hundred  ill-armed  and  ill-fed  Maoris  made  an 
heroic  defence  against  a  force  of  over  fifteen  hundred 
British  soldiers.  After  a  desperate  sortie,  the  greater 
part  of  them  were  destroyed,  and  the  wretched  rem- 
nant, with  Rewi  and  the  king,  escaped  to  the  hilly 
country,  where  it  was  impossible  to  follow  them. 

A  move  was  then  made  by  Cameron  to  the  Tau- 
ranga  district  on  the  eastern  coast,  where  a  strong 
force  of  Maoris  was  entrenched  at  the  Gate-pah,  a 
fortification  in  the  vicinity  of  the  Tauranga  harbour. 
No  great  defence  was  offered  until  about  three 
hundred  men  were  inside  the  pah,  when  fire  was 
opened  at  close  range  by  the  Maoris  in  concealment, 
and  before  a  retreat  could  be  made  twenty-four 
soldiers  were  killed  and  eighty  wounded.  The 
natives  then  abandoned  the  pah,  and  retired  to  rifle- 
pits  near  the  Wairoa,  from  which  they  were  dis- 
lodged ;  but  they  declined  the  terms  of  peace  which 
were  offered,  and  put  up  a  new  pah  at  Te  Ranga, 


400      THE  END  OF  THE  MAORI  WARS. 

which  was  stormed  and  taken  after  a  splendid  defence, 
the  loss  by  the  Maoris  amounting  to  a  hundred  and 
twenty  killed  and  wounded,  while  the  attacking  force 
had  thirteen  killed  and  thirty-nine  wounded.  The 
Tauranga  tribes,  after  this  reverse,  submitted  uncon- 
ditionally, and  the  troubles  in  the  Waikato  and 
eastern  districts  closed.  The  war  was  now  practically 
at  an  end,  the  confiscated  land  was  taken  possession 
of  by  military  settlers,  and  Wi  Tamihana  and  other 
chiefs  tendered  their  submission. 

But  a  fresh  outbreak  had  in  the  meantime  taken 
place  in  the  Taranaki  district,  which  was  to  result  in 
a  series  of  horrible  scenes  and  much  bloodshed.  A 
number  of  the  Maoris,  casting  off  the  religion  of  the 
pakeha,  had  embraced  what  was  commonly  known  as 
Hauhauism,  a  strange  compound  of  Judaism,  Maori 
mythology  with  its  attendant  barbarous  atrocities, 
and  other  superstitions.  Most  of  the  great  chiefs 
held  aloof  from  the  new  creed,  but  sufficient  numbers 
embraced  it  to  be  dangerous  enemies,  and  the  first 
effects  were  seen  at  Ahuahu,  where  a  reconnoitring 
party  fell  into  an  ambuscade.  It  was  afterwards 
found  that  the  bodies  of  those  killed  had  been 
decapitated,  and  much  mutilated ;  the  heads  were 
dried  in  the  Maori  fashion,  and  carried  about  on  long 
poles.  The  new  sect,  however,  gained  but  small  sup- 
port, for  few  of  the  leading  chiefs  embraced  its  tenets, 
and  many  others  came  forward  in  open  opposition. 
At  length  the  friendly  tribes  on  the  Wanganui  river, 
under  Mete  Kingi  and  other  chiefs,  challenged  the 
Hauhaus  to  prove  the  power  of  their  new  gods  by  a 
conflict  on  the  island  of  Moutoa,  up  the  river.  A 


PEACE  DECLARED.  401 

desperate  fight  took  place,  resulting  in  the  total 
defeat  of  the  Hauhaus,  who  had  over  forty  killed. 
The  fanatics  then  commenced  operations  all  over  the 
country ;  at  Taranaki  and  the  Wanganui  district 
on  the  west  coast,  at  Havvke's  Bay  and  Poverty  Bay 
on  the  east  coast,  there  was  a  considerable  uprising. 
On  the  3<Dth  of  April  the  insurgents  made  a  daring 
attack  on  the  redoubt  at  Sentry  Hill,  close  to  New 
Plymouth,  but  were  beaten  off  with  much  loss ;  and 
the  remainder  of  the  war  in  the  Taranaki  district  took 
the  form  of  skirmishes  and  bush  fights,  which  were 
conducted  with  great  bravery  and  skill  on  both  sides. 
Peace  was  declared  by  the  Governor  on  October 
24,  1864,  and  a  pardon  to  all  excepting  a  few  con- 
cerned in  specified  murders  was  offered.  As  a  result 
of  the  policy  of  the  Governor,  the  ministry,  who  dis- 
approved, resigned.  The  King  natives,  though  holding 
aloof  from  the  Hauhaus,  were  implacable,  and  at 
the  close  of  the  Waikato  campaign  they  sullenly 
retired  into  their  own  country,  and  drew  a  boundary 
line  called  the  Atikati,  to  pass  which  without  per- 
mission meant  instant  death.  For  many  years  this 
frontier  was  respected,  and  the  King  country  re- 
mained unknown  to  Europeans  ;  but  the  restrictions 
have  been  gradually  broken  down,  causing  an  inevi- 
table loss  of  the  king's  influence.  This  was  the  last 
serious  conflict  with  the  King  natives,  but  a  com- 
paratively small  number  of  Maoris  in  other  parts  of 
the  colony  who  adopted  Hauhauism  continued  to 
fight  with  singular  bravery  and  skill,  frequently 
against  overwhelming  odds.  Horrible  and  brutal 
murders  of  settlers  often  occurred,  and  on  both  sides 

27 


402      THE  END  OF  THE  MAORI  WARS. 

in  the  campaign  but  little  mercy  was  henceforth 
shown.  On  the  west  coast  the  Hauhaus  caused  great 
uneasiness,  and  General  Cameron  again  took  the 
field.  On  the  east  coast  the  friendly  chiefs,  Ropata 
and  Mokena,  carried  on  the  war  with  the  fanatics, 
whom  they  described  as  the  "  mad  dogs." 

Numerous  engagements  took  place,  and  in  Novem- 
ber, 1865,  a  strong  pah  at  Waerenga  -  a  -  hika,  in 
Poverty  Bay,  was  captured  with  seventy  prisoners 
and  a  loss  of  123  Hauhaus.  The  ill  feeling  which 

had    arisen    between     the    Governor    and    General 

#• 

Cameron  now  became  more  pronounced  than  ever ; 
there  were  constant  conflicts  between  the  General 
and  the  War  Office  on  one  side,  and  Grey  and  his 
ministers  on  the  other,  and  when  the  Governor,  in  the 
absence  of  General  Cameron  in  Sydney,  took  the 
Wereroa  pah — which  was  being  attacked  by  the 
Imperial  troops  with  the  Colonial  forces — things 
reached  a  climax.  General  Cameron  resigned,  and 
his  place  was  filled  by  Major-General  Chute.  Con- 
stant skirmishes  followed  in  the  neighbourhood  of 
Mount  Egmont,  and  the  Patea  district,  until  the 
campaign  was  closed  by  a  brilliant  forced  march  of 
Chute's  army  through  the  disturbed  districts,  the  dis- 
play of  force  causing  a  cessation  of  hostilities  on  the 
part  of  the  Maoris  and  the  Imperial  troops  were 
mostly  withdrawn  from  New  Zealand. 

But  Grey's  conflicts  with  the  Imperial  authorities 
rendered  his  position  untenable,  and  after  a  vigorous 
correspondence,  full  of  recriminations,  he  was  recalled. 
To  prevent  a  recurrence  of  misunderstandings, 
Native  Land  Courts  were  created  and  a  Native  Rights 


RECALL   OF  GREY.  403 

Act,  confirming  the  Maori  tenure  according  to  their 
ancient  customs  and  usages,  was  passed.  More 
generous  legislation,  including  an  Act  providing  four 
seats  for  Maori  representatives  in  Parliament  followed, 
and  Wi  Tamihana  visited  Wellington  and  gave 
evidence  before  a  Select  Committee  appointed  to 
inquire  into  the  causes  of  the  Maori  war.  Correspond- 
ence with  the  Imperial  Government  about  the  pay- 
ment of  the  troops  continued,  and  eventually  it  was 
decided  at  the  instigation  of  Mr.  Weld,  the  Premier, 
that  for  the  future  the  colony  should  carry  on  its  own 
wars,  with  its  own  men,  and  at  its  own  cost.  Only 
one  Imperial  regiment  remained,  and  the  British 
troops  henceforth  played  but  a  very  small  part  in  the 
affairs  of  the  colony. 

The  Hauhaus  were  still  active  in  the  interior  and 
occasionally  made  visits  to  the  west  coast ;  but  they 
were  pursued  by  Major  McDonnell  with  a  force  of 
Colonial  militia  and  natives  and  did  but  little  damage  ; 
meanwhile  the  confiscated  lands  were  surveyed 
and  prepared  for  settlement.  Open  hostilities  were 
re-commenced  on  the  west  coast  in  May,  1868,  when 
Titokowaru,  a  chief  who  had  hitherto  been  friendly, 
tried  to  prevent  the  arrest  of  some  Maoris  for  horse- 
stealing.  Several  murders  followed,  and  almost  at 
the  same  time  Te  Kooti,  a  young  chief  who  had  been 
banished  to  the  Chatham  Islands,  escaped  with  about 
seventy  followers  in  the  schooner  Rifleman,  which 
they  captured  upon  its  visiting  the  islands,  and 
landed  on  the  east  coast.  He  was  at  once  pursued 
by  the  settlers,  but  offered  a  bold  resistance,  and  the 
militia  were  called  out  under  Colonel  Whitmore. 


404      THE  END  OF  THE  MAORI  WARS. 

Then  began  a  long  and  costly  guerilla  campaign,  in 
which  Te  Kooti  proved  himself  a  leader  of  great 
capacity  and  courage,  and  being  also  an  orator  of 
considerable  power,  he  gathered  about  him  a  strong 
band  of  followers  with  whom  he  wrought  much 
havoc  in  the  east  coast  settlements.  There  was 
once  more  war  on  both  the  east  and  west  coasts ; 
but  the  fighting  was  carried  on  principally  in  the 
bush. 


TE    KOOTI. 


Colonel  McDonnell,  in  charge  of  the  west  coast 
forces,  attacked  Titokowaru's  pah  at  Te-ngutu-o-te- 
manu  and  destroyed  it,  and  an  unsuccessful  attempt 
was  made  to  take  a  new  pah  erected  by  him  at 
Ruaruru.  The  Maoris  on  this  occasion  lay  in 
ambush,  pouring  a  deadly  fire  on  the  attacking  force, 
and  inflicting  severe  loss.  A  month  or  two  later 
Colonel  McDonnell  had  again  to  retire  from  Okutuku, 
and  the  command  subsequently  was  entrusted  to 


MASSACRE   OF  REV.   JOHN    WHITELY.         405 

Colonel  Whitmore.  Another  pah  at  Tauranga-ika 
was  taken,  but  Titokowaru  escaped  by  an  under- 
ground passage,  and  continued  to  attack  and  harass 
Whitmore's  forces.  Some  friendly  natives  under 
Keepa  eventually  drove  Titokowaru  up  the  Patea 
River  for  some  distance  and  quite  broke  up  his  band. 
One  of  the  most  distressing  events  connected  with 
the  war  on  this  side  of  the  island  was  the  massacre 
at  the  White  Cliffs,  north  of  Waitara,  of  the  Rev. 
John  Whitely,  an  old  and  highly  respected  Wesley  an 
missionary,  and  several  other  Europeans,  including 
women  and  children.  The  news  of  this  atrocity 
caused  a  thrill  of  horror  to  run  throughout  the 
colony,  but  the  murderers  were  never  punished, 
although  the  scene  of  the  outrage  was  afterwards 
occupied  by  armed  constabulary  for  many  years. 

This  ended  the  Taranaki  war,  but  while  there  was 
peace  in  the  west  coast,  Te  Kooti  kept  his  enemies 
hard  at  work  in  the  east,  and  in  the  interior.  With 
consummate  skill  and  audacity,  he  carried  on  the 
campaign  for  some  time  longer,  managing  always  to 
elude  his  pursuers  even  when  apparently  hopelessly 
hemmed  in.  Finally,  the  pursuit  was  left  to  the 
native  chiefs,  Ropata,  Keepa,  and  Topia,  and  a  reward 
of  ^"5,000  was  offered  by  the  Government  for  Te 
Kooti's  capture.  Eventually  he  escaped  into  the  King 
country,  where  his  mana  as  a  righting  chief  and  priest 
was  sufficient  to  gain  him  much  sympathy  and  he 
was  allowed  by  the  Waikatos  to  remain  amongst 
them,  though  he  received  no  actual  support  at  their 
hands.  For  political  reasons  the  pursuit  was  then 
relaxed  and  he  was  allowed  by  the  Government  to 


406      THE  END  OF  THE  MAORI  WARS. 

remain  ;  but  on  account  of  the  atrocities  said  to  have 
been  committed  by  his  direction,  his  name  was  long 
referred  to  by  the  settlers  with  expressions  of  oppro- 
brium and  execration.  With  the  flight  of  Te  Kooti, 
the  Maori  wars  closed,  and  since  1871  there  have  been 
no  further  disturbances.  Occasional  alarm  has  been 
felt  in  the  frontier  districts,  but  confidence  has  been 
gradually  restored,  and  peaceful  European  settlements 
have  sprung  up  in  spots  which  formerly  were  the 
scene  of  bloodshed  and  disorder.  In  1872,  Wiremi 
Kingi  accepted  the  offer  of  Mr.  Donald  McLean  to 
return  to  his  old  place  at  Waitara  where  he  was 
gladly  received  by  the  European  population. 

Some  ten  years  later  a  chief  known  as  Te  Whiti 
brought  great  crowds  of  natives  to  his  pah  at 
Parihaka  to  discuss  what  he  considered  a  breach  of  a 
promise  to  the  friendly  natives,  and  much  uneasiness 
was  felt  by  the  settlers  on  the  west  coast.  Even- 
tually the  minister  for  the  native  affairs,  Mr.  Bryce, 
with  a  strong  force  of  armed  constabulary  and  volun- 
teers, effected  peaceably  Te  Whiti's  arrest ;  and 
though  the  legality  of  the  step  was  much  questioned 
by  his  opponents,  the  result  was  good.  A  commis- 
sion was  appointed  to  inquire  into  the  matters  com- 
plained of,  and  large  areas  of  land  were  given  to 
those  who  had  legitimate  claims.  With  the  excep- 
tion of  the  Hauhaus  and  a  few  other  individual  cases, 
the  Maoris  generally  proved  themselves  to  be  brave 
and  generous  foes.  They  were  remarkable  fighters, 
and  were  led  by  men  with  wonderful  strategical 
capacity  and  military  instinct.  But  the  old  fighting 
days  are  now  over,  it  is  hoped,  for  ever,  and  the  two 


ARREST   OF   TE    WHITI. 


407 


races  are  intermingling  and  living  harmoniously  side 
by  side.  The  Maoris  are  moreover  meeting  the  fate 
of  all  savage  people  who  come  in  contact  with  a 
higher  civilisation,  and  are  rapidly  vanishing  from  the 
land  of  their  fathers. 


XXXI. 


UNDER   THE   CONSTITUTION. 
(1854-1893.) 

THE  story  of  the  native  wars  occupies  so  large  a 
place  in  New  Zealand  history  that  other  matters  are 
liable  to  be  lost  sight  of.  While  the  events  already 
recorded  were  taking  place,  however,  much  solid 
progress  was  made  in  industrial  development.  In 
1860,  the  first  railway  in  the  colony  was  constructed 
between  Christchurch  and  Lyttelton,  and  from  this 
period  date  many  important  constitutional  and  other 
changes.  The  colony  had  now  overcome  its  earlier 
troubles,  and  the  inhabitants,  with  a  self-reliance  bred 
by  the  struggles  that  had  so  severely  tested  their 
courage  and  endurance,  acted  decisively  in  questions 
which  in  other  colonies  were  as  yet  scarcely  raised. 
New  Zealand  is  perhaps  in  its  legislation  the  most 
democratic  of  the  Australasian  provinces.  Not- 
withstanding the  exodus  which  had  taken  place 
during  the  gold  rush  to  California  and  Australia,  the 
population  had  steadily  increased,  and  more  especially 
in  the  south  island  rapid  progress  was  being  made, 

408 


FINDING    OF   GOLD.  409 

while  the  Maori  troubles  were  retarding  the  develop- 
ment of  the  north. 

In  1 86 1  very  rich  deposits  of  gold  were  found  at 
Tuapeka,  Clutha,  and  elsewhere,  in  Otago  and  later 
on  on  the  west  coast  of  the  south  island.  Speedily 
diggers  who  had  worked  out  the  best  patches  then 
known  in  Australia  flocked  to  the  colony,  and  the 
growth  of  the  population  added  to  the  importance  of 
the  pastoral  and  agricultural  interests.  After  consti- 
tutional government  had  been  granted,  the  chief 
political  parties  were  the  advocates  of  centralisation 
on  one  side,  and  the  supporters  of  the  provincial 
system  then  prevailing  on  the  other.  Many  changes 
were  made  in  the  electoral  system,  and  in  1860  the 
population  standard  laid  down  by  the  Constitution  Act 
as  the  basis  of  representation  was  abandoned,  and  the 
wealth  and  other  circumstances  of  a  district  were 
made  factors  in  its  claims.  A  natural  result  was  that 
inequalities  arose  which  were  the  cause  of  much 
contention.  The  Provincial  Councils  were  largely 
dependent  for  their  revenue  on  the  customs  duties 
remaining  after  the  cost  of  the  central  government 
had  been  met,  and  the  increasing  amount  required  by 
the  central  executive  on  account  of  the  war  alarmed 
those  who  supported  the  provincial  system. 

So  strong  was  the  aversion  of  some  to  centralisa- 
tion, that  there  was  a  serious  danger  at  one  time 
of  a  proposal  to  divide  the  colony  into  two  separate 
states  being  carried  into  effect  ;  but  fortunately  no 
such  error  was  actually  made.  In  1864  the  seat  of 
government  was  removed  to  Wellington  which  was 
more  generally  convenient  than  Auckland,  and  the 


410  UNDER    THE   CONSTITUTION. 

"  Centralists,"  as  the  advocates  of  one  administrative 
authority  were  called,  gradually  increased  their 
influence.  In  1867  the  consolidation  of  all  loans  and 
debentures  to  the  extent  of  seven  millions  was  effected, 
and  in  the  following  year  the  ballot  was  substituted 
for  open  voting  at  elections.  The  colony  was  at  this 
time  in  a  very  depressed  condition  owing  to  the  fall- 
ing off  in  the  yield  of  gold  and  the  shrinkage  in  the 
price  of  colonial  produce  in  England  ;  but  the  settlers 
gradually  adapted  themselves  to  the  new  conditions, 
and  in  1870  were  sufficiently  sanguine  to  support  the 
policy  initiated  by  Sir  Julius  Vogel,  which  provided 
for  the  borrowing  by  the  Central  Government  of 
large  sums  of  money  on  the  English  market,  for  the 
purposes  of  public  works  and  immigration,  matters 
which  hitherto  had  been  entrusted  to  the  Provincial 
Councils. 

New  departments  of  the  Central  Government  were 
created  to  carry  on  the  scheme  under  which  loans 
to  the  extent  of  ten  millions  were  floated,  and  two 
and  a  half  million  acres  of  land  were  sold.  It  was 
intended  to  open  up  by  railways,  &c.,  the  land  for 
settlement,  and  at  the  same  time  introduce  immi- 
grants, while  ;£  1, 000,000  was  to  be  devoted  to  defence 
during  the  next  five  years  in  maintaining  the  armed 
constabulary,  as  the  colonial  permanent  forces  were 
now  termed.  The  expectations  of  the  framer  of  the 
scheme  were  to  a  great  extent  fulfilled,  for  during  the 
next  few  years  population  and  the  outward  signs  of 
prosperity  increased  by  leaps  and  bounds.  The 
Provincials  Councils  still  remained  in  force,  but  they 
were  shorn  of  much  of  their  influence,  and  the 


SIR    GEORGE   GREY  FIRST  PREMIER.  411 

principal  effect  of  the  new  system  was  a  scramble 
between  the  provinces  for  the  loan  money  which  was 
being  spent  with  such  lavish  prodigality. 

The  effect  on  the  public  life  of  the  colony,  as  may 
readily  be  imagined,  was  not  good.  The  large  ex- 
penditure of  borrowed  money  created  a  corresponding 
mania  for  private  speculation,  and  an  unreasonable 
inflation  of  values.  One  inevitable  result  of  the 
centralisation  of  the  public  works  administration,  and 
the  increased  patronage  thus  given  to  the  General 
Government  was  the  collapse  of  the  Provincial 
Councils.  In  1876  Sir  Julius  Vogel,  who  had  pre- 
viously been  a  warm  supporter  of  the  provincial 
system,  came  boldly  down  with  a  Bill  for  their 
abolition.  A  great  popular  outcry  followed  this  step, 
and  Sir  George  Grey,  who  had  for  some  years  lived 
in  retirement  on  the  island  of  Kawan,  entered  political 
life.  Sir  Julius  Vogel's  Bill  was,  nevertheless,  carried, 
though  it  was  stipulated  that  it  should  not  come  into 
force  until  the  new  parliament  was  elected.  The  Act 
created  sixty-three  counties  to  take  the  place  of  the 
provinces,  and  borough  councils  were  provided  for  the 
towns,  as  well  as  other  machinery  for  local  govern- 
ment. Sir  George  Grey  was  a  member  of  the  new 
Parliament,  and  became  the  first  premier  under  the 
new  order  of  things,  though  he  had  a  very  small 
majority  at  his  back. 

The  history  of  the  colony  has  since  been  a  record 
of  steady  progress,  and  characteristic  measures  have 
found  their  way  on  to  the  statute  book.  The  duration 
of  Parliament  has  been  reduced  from  five  to  three 
years ;  the  provision  for  payment  of  members  of 


I.         -' 

AUCKLAND  HARBOUR — THE  WHARF. 


"  ONE  MAN  ONE    VOTE."  413 

Parliament  has  been  made  statutory  instead  of  being 
by  annual  vote  ;  and  free  and  compulsory  education 
by  the  State  of  all  children  to  a  certain  standard  has 
been  established.  The  "  one  man  one  vote"  principle 
found  favour  when  in  1889  all  persons  were  prohibited 
from  voting  in  more  than  one  constituency  at  any 
election  of  members  to  the  House  of  Representatives. 
These  and  many  other  important  measures  were 
carried  by  different  ministries,  which  have  not  un- 
frequently  been  coalitions. 

The  policy  of  lavish  borrowing,  which  was  begun 
in  1870,  was  followed  by  an  inevitable  reaction 
between  the  years  1880  and  1890.  Severe  depression 
of  all  industries  afflicted  the  colony,  and  the  value 
of  real  property  fell  to  an  absurd  figure,  trade  de- 
creased and  many  of  the  inhabitants  left  for  Australia 
and  elsewhere.  But  the  situation  was  boldly  faced, 
and  by  severe  economy  in  the  public  expenditure, 
and  a  cessation  of  the  construction  of  unproductive 
public  works,  the  finances  were  placed  once  more 
upon  a  sound  basis.  Confidence  was  gradually  re- 
stored, and  the  position  of  New  Zealand  is  now  as 
good  as  that  of  any  of  its  neighbours.  The  develop- 
ment of  its  grand  resources  is  steadily  going  forward, 
and  much  enterprise  has  been  shown  in  the  inaugu- 
ration of  an  extensive  export  of  meat  by  which 
New  Zealand  sends  annually  vast  quantities  of 
frozen  mutton  to  London,  where  it  commands  a 
ready  sale  and  high  price.  Almost  simultaneously 
with  the  introduction  of  this  trade  lines  of  direct 
steamers  with  England  were  started,  and  the  coastal 
and  intercolonial  steam  service  was  greatly  improved. 


414  UNDER    THE   CONSTITUTION. 

Telegraphic  communication  is  established  throughout 
the  colony,  which  was  connected  with  the  mainland 
of  Australia  by  cable  in  1876.  A  vigorous  policy  of 
railway  construction  has  been  adopted,  and  several 
private  lines  have  been  made  on  the  land  grant 
principle.  Formed  amidst  the  gravest  difficulties, 
which  have  only  been  overcome  by  the  indomitable 
resolution  and  courage  of  the  settlers,  New  Zealand 
is  to-day  one  of  the  most  prosperous  members  of  the 
Australian  group.  Its  beautiful  scenery  and  climate 
make  it  the  playground  of  pleasure-seekers  from 
all  parts  of  Australia,  and  the  conditions  of  life  are 
singularly  like  those  prevailing  in  the  most  favoured 
positions  of  the  mother  country. 


XXXII. 


WORK   AND   WAGES. 
(1788-1892.) 

FOR  many  years  after  Captain  Phillip  landed  at 
Sydney  Cove  there  were  practically  no  free  labourers 
in  Australia.  All  work  was  performed  by  the  con- 
victs, under  the  direction  of  the  Governor,  or  by 
servants  assigned  to  private  employers.  Even  when 
free  artisans  and  other  workers  began  to  arrive,  the 
competition  in  most  trades  with  the  assigned  convicts 
caused  wages  to  be  meagre,  and  the  standard  of  living 
extremely  low.  The  most  degrading  immorality 
permeated  almost  every  grade  of  society,  and  the 
working  classes  were  not  backward  in  following  the 
example  of  their  masters.  Wages,  both  of  bond  and 
free,  were  the  subject  of  general  orders  by  the 
Governor.  Thus  at  one  time  it  was  directed  that,  in 
addition  to  the  rations  according  to,  and  equal  with, 
the  Government  allowance,  the  sum  of  £10  sterling 
per  annum  to  a  man  convict,  and  £j  sterling  to 
a  woman  convict,  as  including  the  value  of  the  slops 
allowed,  and  the  sum  of  £7,  or  .£5  los.  exclusive  of 
slops,  should  be  paid  to  duly-assigned  servants ;  and  a 


415 


416  WORK  AND    WAGES. 

schedule  of  remuneration  for  free  labour  much  on  the 
same  scale  was  issued  in  regard  to  the  principal 
agricultural  employments.  As  yet  the  number  of 
artificers  and  mechanics  was  so  small  that  it  was  not 
considered  worth  while  to  include  them  in  the  regu- 
lations. The  Government  works  occupied  all  the 
best  of  the  carpenters,  stonemasons,  and  sawyers,  so 
that  the  few  free  men  who  followed  these  trades  were 
always  in  demand. 

Of  course  there  was  evasion  of  this  sort  of  order, 
and  in  a  proclamation  issued  in  1810,  after  fixing 
wages  at  55.  for  an  eleven-hour  day,  it  was  provided 
that  "  persons  taking  or  demanding  more,  or  refusing 
to  work  at  the  above  rates  to  be  set  in  the  stocks  for 
two  days  and  one  night  for  the  first  offence,  and  for 
a  second  or  continual  refusal  three  months  hard 
labour.  Masters  paying  more  to  be  imprisoned  for 
ten  days  without  bail,  to  pay  a  fine  of  £$,  and  to 
remain  in  prison  until  paid."  When  food  and  clothing 
were  fairly  cheap,  employers  generally  paid  a  portion 
of  their  workman's  wages  by  rations  or  in  kind,  a 
system  which  had  become  recognised  owing  to  the 
hand-to-mouth  manner  in  which  most  business  was 
conducted.  Agriculture  was  by  far  the  most  im- 
portant industry  of  the  settlement,  but  the  extra- 
ordinary fluctuations  to  which  it  was  liable  caused 
much  hardship  to  those  engaged.  One  year  they 
would  be  nearly  ruined  by  the  abundance  of  the 
season  ;  in  the  next  their  whole  crop,  and  frequently 
the  homesteads  too,  would  be  swept  away  by  a  flood, 
for  as  yet  cultivation  was  confined  to  the  banks  of  the 
Hawkesbury  and  Nepean  rivers.  For  instance,  in 


EARLY  HARDSHIPS.  417 

1804  there  was  a  most  disastrously  good  harvest. 
The  yield  of  grain  was  so  heavy  and  so  much  in 
excess  of  the  requirements  of  the  population,  that 
its  price  fell  below  the  actual  cost  of  reaping,  thresh- 
ing, and  carting.  Much  of  the  grain  was  quite 
unmarketable,  and  the  unfortunate  farmers  were 
consequently  nearly  ruined.  Next  season  the  whole 
colony  was  reduced  to  the  verge  of  famine,  and  wheat 
and  maize,  which  a  few  months  previously  had  been 
worthless,  ran  up  to  £5  to  £6  per  bushel,  on  account 
of  a  great  flood  which  came  suddenly  down  the  rivers 
and  swept  away  in  a  few  hours,  not  only  all  the  old 
grain  which  still  remained  on  hand  from  the  previous 
season,  but  the  whole  of  the  new  harvest  as  well. 

The  variations  in  the  price  of  the  necessaries  of  life, 
due  to  inundations,  or  drought,  or  abnormally  good 
crops,  seriously  affected  the  labouring  poor.  There 
was  little  to  choose  between  evils  of  abundance  and 
famine,  for  the  wage-earner  suffered  as  much  from  loss 
of  employment  on  account  of  excessive  production  as 
from  the  risk  of  starvation  by  the  scarcity  of  food. 
Fortunately  meat  was  plentiful  and  comparatively 
cheap — about  sixpence  per  Ib. — and  not  subject  to 
the  same  influences  as  grain,  so  that  a  dearth  of  one 
article  of  food  could  be  to  some  extent  met  by  an 
increase  in  the  consumption  of  another.  Under  these 
conditions  agriculture  became  unpopular,  and  there 
was  a  disproportionate  growth  in  other  branches  of 
industry ;  but  it  is  curious,  in  view  of  the  extraordinary 
efforts  that  have  since  been  made  by  some  colonies  to 
increase  manufacturing  enterprise,  to  read  that  persons 
at  this  time  regarded  with  apprehension  the  rapid 

28 


418  WORK  AND    WAGES. 

development  of  manufactures.  Woollen  cloth,  hats, 
earthenware,  pipes,  salt,  candles,  soap,  beer,  leather, 
and  almost  all  the  articles  in  common  demand  were 
made  locally,  and  Wentworth,  writing  in  1819,  con- 
sidered that  the  time  was  close  at  hand  when  the 
necessity  of  importing  manufactured  articles  from 
Great  Britain  would  have  been  entirely  removed. 

Previous  to  1836  the  average  daily  wage  of 
mechanics  in  building  trades  was  almost  6s.  6d.,  • 
and  farm  and  other  labourers,  taking  one  year 
with  another,  were  paid  at  the  rate  of  about  .£18 
per  annum,  with  food  and  lodging.  During  the 
years  following  1836,  larger  numbers  of  free  immi- 
grants came  to  Australia,  bringing  with  them  a  higher 
standard  of  living,  and  consequently  a  desire  for 
better  wage  than  that  previously  paid.  Competition 
with  convict  labour  had  hitherto  so  degraded  the  free 
workers  that  as  a  rule  they  were  willing  to  live  upon 
a  wage  so  small  as  compared  with  the  current  prices 
of  commodities  as  to  render  it  impossible  for  them  to 
maintain  even  a  semblance  of  decency,  to  say  nothing 
of  comfort,  and  even  after  the  class  of  assigned 
servants  had  been  largely  diluted  by  free  immigration, 
the  convicts,  emancipated  or  bond,  comprised  one- 
third  of  the  total  population,  and  had  a  proportionate 
influence  on  the  labour  market.  But  as  the  colony 
grew,  and  the  demands  of  the  settlers  for  assigned 
servants  became  far  in  excess  of  the  supply,  the 
influence  of  the  convict  element  was  to  a  great 
extent  removed.  Wages  rapidly  rose,  and  about  four 
years  after  the  arrival  of  the  first  assisted  settlers 
the  prospects  of  the  working  classes  greatly  improved. 


420  WORK  AND    WAGES. 

The  advance  made  was,  however,  lost  in  the  severe 
depression  which  followed  the  commercial  crisis  in 
1843.  All  the  provinces  were  more  or  less  influenced, 
but  in  New  South  Wales  the  effects  were  most 
severely  felt.  Wages,  which  in  the  building 
trades  had  reached  8s.  Qd.  per  day,  fell  rapidly 
to  6s.,  and  then  to  45.  —  a  lower  figure  than 
had  ever  previously  been  reached.  Farm  and  other 
labourers  who,  in  1842,  were  getting  £22  per  annum 
with  their  board  and  lodging,  were  paid  £1$  in  1843, 
and  were  thankful  if  they  could  obtain  work  at  these 
rates.  As  the  panic  subsided,  there  was  a  slight 
recovery  in  both  wages  and  prices,  but  Australia 
could  not  escape  long  punishment  for  the  extravagant 
speculation  which  had  been  prevalent.  Although 
wages  were  improved,  and  in  the  building  trades 
stood  at  an  average  of  53.  6d.  per  day  in  1847  as 
compared  with  43.  in  1845,  there  was  nothing  to 
sustain  the  rise,  and  the  average  fell  during  the  next 
three  years  to  45.  6d.  per  day.  This  state  of  things 
continued  until  the  whole  of  the  colonies  were  thrown 
into  a  ferment  by  the  gold  discoveries,  and  the 
general  stampede  from  the  towns  made  it  necessary 
for  employers  to  pay  almost  any  sum  demanded  by 
their  men.  The  state  of  Melbourne  is  thus  described 
in  a  letter  written  in  June,  1852.  A  carter,  it  is  stated, 
made  £12  per  week,  his  expenses  not  amounting 
to  more  than  £4,  while  a  cab  or  carriage  driver 
obtained  fares  at  the  rate  of  something  like  £1,400  per 
annum.  Masons  and  carpenters  received  £1  a  day, 
but  were  not  inclined  to  work  even  for  this,  and 
domestic  servants  could  not  be  got  for  love  or  money. 


DIAGRAM   SHOWING   VARIATIONS   IN   PRICES   AND 
WAGES   SINCE   1841. 


WAOES  LEVEL  shown  thus 
PRICE  LEVEL  shown  thus : 


422  WORK  AND    WAGES. 

A  load  of  water  cost  1 8s.  ;  a  load  of  wood  £4 ; 
boots  £4,  and  a  pair  of  shoes  £2.  The  dangers  of 
the  road,  according  to  the  writer,  caused  a  great 
demand  for  firearms,  and  a  consignment  of  pistols 
invoiced  at  £60  sold  in  a  week  for  nearly  £700. 

Probably  the  condition  of  things  is  somewhat 
exaggerated,  but  there  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  gold 
discoveries  completely  changed  the  status  of  the 
working  man.  Instead  of  accepting  what  he  could 
get,  for  some  years  he  was  enabled  to  dictate  his  own 
terms,  and  the  spirit  of  independence  called  into  life 
has  never  yet  died  out.  The  labour  market  was  more 
or  less  unsettled  until  about  1857,  when  things  began 
to  slowly  slip  back  into  their  normal  condition.  The 
year  1854  was  the  highest  point  reached  in  money 
wages.  In  1855  the  average  daily  remuneration  in  the 
building  trades  fell  to  about  five  shillings,  but  the 
annual  wages  of  farm  labourers,  who  were  still  very 
scarce,  advanced  .£5. 

The  wages  of  building  trades  mechanics  continued 
to  decline  until  in  1869,  when  about  8s.  6d.  per  diem 
was  the  ruling  figure,  but  during  the  next  three  years 
there  was  a  slight  recovery.  Since  1871  the  variations 
in  the  rates  paid  to  mechanics  have  been  very  slight, 
the  range  amounting  to  only  about  is.  per  diem  ;  but 
the  progressive  increase  which  was  visible  in  the  years 
immediately  following  1851  has  been  maintained  in 
the  case  of  agricultural  and  unskilled  labour,  and 
about  £46  per  annum  with  rations  and  lodgings  is 
now  the  average  for  farm  and  station  hands  as  com- 
pared with  ^37  los.  in  1881,  and  .£28  at  the  com- 
mencement of  the  previous  decade. 


THE   EIGHT-HOURS'   DAY.  423 

The  mechanical  trades  did  not  submit  quietly  to 
the  reductions  which  took  place  between  1855  and 
1860,  and  from  this  period  dates  the  movement  in 
favour  of  the  "  eight-hours'  day,"  and  the  systematic 
organisation  of  the  labour  forces.  Of  course,  prior  to 
1855,  there  were  some  trade  unions,  but  they  were 
insignificant  and  powerless  to  materially  control 
matters  affecting  the  hours  of  labour  or  wages  of 
their  members.  The  eight-hour  agitation  first  com- 
menced in  New  Zealand,  and  was  then  taken  up 
by  the  stonemasons  of  Sydney,  and  a  little  later  by 
various  classes  of  operatives  in  Melbourne.  The 
main  plea  urged  in  support  of  shortening  the  hours 
of  labour  was  that  by  this  means  employment  could 
be  provided  for  more  men.  The  question  of  indirectly 
increasing  the  earnings  of  workers  by  creating  more 
"overtime"  does  not  at  first  seem  to  have  been  a 
consideration,  for  the  promoters  of  the  movement 
expressed  themselves  perfectly  willing  to  accept  a 
corresponding  reduction  in  wages  should  their  request 
as  to  the  hours  be  granted.  Many  of  the  large  em- 
ployers met  the  men  in  a  very  fair  spirit,  and  with 
the  exception  of  a  few  strikes  there  was  wonderfully 
little  friction.  Gradually  the  eight-hour  day  spread 
from  one  trade  to  another,  until  now  it  is  the  recog- 
nised working  period  in  most  occupations,  and  the 
annual  commemoration  of  its  inauguration  is  made 
the  occasion  of  a  general  public  holiday. 

The  power  of  the  Labour  Unions  has  been  prin- 
cipally exercised  in  the  endeavour  to  maintain  the 
standard  of  wages,  and  hitherto  their  efforts  in  this 
direction  have  met  with  a  considerable  measure  of 


424  WORK  AND    WAGES. 

success.  Naturally  any  competition  which  threatens 
to  undermine  the  status  of  labour  is  regarded  with 
extreme  hostility,  and  the  plodding  Chinamen,  who 
came  to  Australia  in  some  numbers  in  the  years 
following  the  gold  discoveries,  became  the  objects 
of  popular  aversion.  At  first  this  feeling  was  de- 
monstrated by  isolated  acts  of  violence  perpetrated 
on  the  Chinese  at  the  diggings,  but  generally  a 
systematic  agitation  in  favour  of  the  imposition  of 
some  legal  restraint  on  Chinese  immigration  gained 
support,  and  in  1 880  Acts  were  passed  by  all  the 
colonies,  with  the  exception  of  Western  Australia  and 
South  Australia  (so  far  as  the  Northern  Territory  is 
concerned),  imposing  a  poll  tax  of  ^10  on  all  Chinese 
arriving  in  Australia,  and  a  high  fine  on  all  captains 
of  vessels  who  allowed  more  than  a  specified  number 
to  land  from  their  ships.  These  precautions  did  not, 
however,  have  the  desired  effect,  and  in  1888  the 
various  governments  were  compelled  by  the  force  of 
public  feeling  to  introduce  new  legislation  of  a  drastic 
character.  Masters  of  vessels  are  now  forbidden 
under  a  heavy  penalty  to  bring  more  than  one 
Chinese  to  every  300  tons  of  their  ships,  and  a  poll 
tax  of  £100  is  charged  each  Chinaman  on  landing. 
In  Western  Australia  the  old  ;£io  tax  has  been 
adopted,  and  in  the  Northern  Territory  no  tax  at  all 
is  as  yet  imposed.  By  these  means  the  desired  end 
was  gained,  and  the  immigration  of  Chinese  has 
almost  entirely  ceased.  Nevertheless  the  expressions 
of  hostility  towards  the  few  thousand  Chinese  who 
were  already  in  Australia  before  the  passing  of  this 
law  continue,  and  the  Government  is  constantly  being 


ANTI-CHINESE   LEGISLATION.  425 

urged  to  compel   the   manufactures   of  the  Chinese 
cabinetmakers,  &c.,  to  be  especially  branded. 

It  is  difficult  to  foresee  what  will  be  the  future  of 
the  labour  organisations  in  Australia,  but  it  is  not 
improbable  that  the  limit  of  their  power  has  been 
nearly  reached.  So  long  as  there  was  a  lavish  ex- 
penditure of  borrowed  money  by  the  Government  on 
public  works,  and  a  consequent  inflation  of  all  values, 
the  demand  for  mechanics  was  in  excess  of  the 
supply,  and  the  unions  were  able  with  comparative 
ease  to  prevent  their  members  from  accepting  work 
at  prices  below  the  authorised  rates.  But  all  this  is 
changed.  For  many  years  most  of  the  colonies  will 
have  to  exercise  severe  economy  in  the  construction 
of  public  works  and  buildings,  and  already  the 
decrease  thus  caused  in  employment  is  having  its 
effect.  Although  the  nominal  rates  of  remuneration 
are  maintained  in  all  trades  where  it  is  possible,  there 
is  considerable  increase  in  the  proportion  of  work 
done  by  the  piece,  and  jobs  are  frequently  taken  at 
a  figure  which  cannot  possibly  yield  to  the  labourer 
wages  equivalent  to  the  union  standard.  In  addition 
to  these  considerations  the  labour  bodies  are  not  now 
prepared  for  a  struggle.  The  proportion  of  their 
members  to  the  total  adult  wage-earning  population 
is  small  ;  their  funds,  which  were  at  one  time  con- 
siderable, have  been  exhausted  by  recent  protracted 
but  abortive  strikes  ;  and,  lastly,  the  masters  have  been 
taught  a  lesson  by  their  men,  and  have  proved  apt 
pupils.  Instead  of  the  whole  force  of  combined 
labour  being  directed  against  one  unsupported  em- 
ployer, the  unions  in  any  future  struggle  will  have 


426  WORK   AND    WAGES. 

to  face  an  equally  if  not  more  perfect  organisation 
than  their  own,  and  in  a  contest  under  such  conditions 
the  victory  could  only  go  one  way. 

The  attempt  to  meet  this  development  by  the 
creation  of  a  "  labour  party "  in  Parliament  has 
failed,  for  it  has  been  found  to  be  the  easiest  thing 
in  the  world  for  any  fairly  astute  politician  to  split  its 
ranks  whenever  he  may  deem  such  a  course  expedient, 
while  the  labouring  classes  themselves  hold  such  very 
mixed  opinions  on  most  questions  of  importance,  that 
a  delegate,  such  as  most  labour  members  really  are, 
finds  it  impossible  to  escape  the  censure  of  his 
constituents.  The  case  has  been  stated  as  briefly  and 
clearly  as  possible,  but  there  are  other  influences  at 
work  which  there  is  not  space  to  trace  here.  It  will 
be  a  deplorable  event,  if  the  labour  unions  collapse 
under  the  great  strain  to  which  they  must  before 
long  be  subjected.  Although  mingled  with  many 
foolish  and  ignorant  demands,  the  main  aspirations 
of  the  working  classes  in  Australia  are  entirely  good, 
and  the  trade  societies  are  the  only  agencies  through 
which  those  aspirations  can  be  made  known  ;  while 
the  very  fact  of  the  power  to  organise  implies  a 
training  in  the  highest  qualities  of  citizenship.  From 
a  labour  party  in  Parliament  but  little  is  to  be  hoped, 
and  it  is  doubtful  if  the  legislature  with  the  best 
intentions  can  do  much  towards  the  settlement  of 
matters  between  employers  and  employed.  The 
relations  between  the  two  classes  have  been  aptly 
described  by  a  large  employer  of  labour  in  Australia 
as  similar  to  those  existing  between  husband  and 
wife.  They  are  utterly  dependent  one  upon  the 


RELATIONS   OF  EMPLOYERS   AND   EMPLOYED.   427 

other,  and,  as  they  have  to  pass  their  life  together 
somehow,  this  can  best  be  done  by  the  exercise  of 
mutual  respect  and  moderation.  Outside  intervention 
is,  in  one  case  as  in  the  other,  more  likely  to  do  harm 
than  good,  and  the  interference  of  the  law,  except  in 
the  restraint  of  violence  or  the  punishment  of  dis- 
honesty, will  have  no  better  result. 


XXXIII. 


FEDERATION. 
(1847-18930 

THE  creation  of  an  Assembly,  in  which  all  the 
colonies  of  Australasia  should  be  represented,  to  deal 
with  matters  affecting  the  provinces  generally,  was 
seriously  suggested  by  Earl  Grey  when,  in  1847,  he 
announced  the  intentions  of  the  Imperial  Government 
with  regard  to  the  proposed  alterations  in  the  colonial 
constitutions.  "Some  method,"  wrote  the  Secretary 
of  State,  "  would  be  devised  for  enabling  the  various 
legislatures  of  the  several  Australian  colonies  to  co- 
operate with  each  other  in  the  enactment  of  such 
laws  as  may  be  necessary  for  regulating  the  interests 
common  to  those  possessions  collectively  ;  such,  for 
example,  are  the  imposition  of  duties  of  import  and 
export,  the  conveyance  of  letters,  and  the  formation 
of  roads,  railways,  or  other  internal  communications 
traversing  any  two  or  more  of  such  colonies."  The 
storm  of  opposition  which  greeted  the  rest  of  Earl 
Grey's  proposals  on  this  occasion  has  been  described 
elsewhere,  and  no  steps  were  consequently  taken  to 

give  effect  to  his  recommendations  with  regard  to  a. 

428 


REPORT  OF  THE  PRIVY  COUNCIL.         429 

federal  assembly.  The  importance  of  the  subject 
was  not,  however,  forgotten,  and  it  was  referred  to 
at  some  length  in  the  Report  of  the  Committee  of 
the  Privy  Council  on  Trade  and  Plantations  con- 
cerning Australian  affairs  which  was  brought  up  eaily 
in  1849.  The  words  of  the  report  are  peculiarly 
significant,  in  view  of  the  policy  which  was  before 
long  adopted  by  the  colony  of  Victoria,  for  the 
committee  saw  the  "  obstruction  to  the  intercolonial 
trade,"  and  "the  check  to  the  development  of  the 
resources "  which  must  inevitably  follow  tariff  re- 
strictions preventing  goods  from  being  carried  from 
one  colony  to  another  "  with  the  same  absolute 
freedom  as  between  any  two  adjacent  counties  in 
England."  For  this  reason  it  was  recommended 
that  an  authority  should  be  created  "  to  act  for  all  the 
colonies  conjointly,"  and  it  was  suggested  that  the 
Governor  of  New  South  Wales  should  be  made 
Governor-general,  and  be  empowered  to  call  together 
a  "  General  Assembly  of  Australia,"  comprising  him- 
self and  a  single  House  of  Delegates  elected  by  the 
legislatures  of  the  various  colonies. 

The  General  Assembly  was  to  deal  with  customs 
duties,  postal  arrangements,  roads,  canals,  railways, 
beacons  and  lighthouses,  shipping,  weights  and 
measures,  and  such  other  matters  as  from  time  to 
time  might  be  referred  to  it.  The  expenses  of  the 
administration  were  to  be  met  by  "  an  equal  per- 
centage from  the  revenue  received  in  all  the  colonies." 
In  addition  a  Supreme  Court  of  Appeal  was  to  be 
established.  Although  included  in  the  Bill  which 
Earl  Grey  introduced  in  1850,  the  federal  provisions 


430  FEDERATION. 

never  came  into  operation,  and  the  question  of  the 
creation  of  a  General  Assembly  remained  in  abeyance 
until  Wentworth  attached  to  the  memorable  report 
of  the  Select  Committee  of  the  New  South  Wales 
Council  on  the  Constitution  the  opinion  that  "  the 
establishment  at  once  of  a  General  Assembly  to  make 
laws  in  relation  to  intercolonial  questions "  was  a 
matter  of  the  highest  importance.  It  was  considered 
inexpedient  to  embody  the  provisions  for  carrying 
out  this  scheme  in  the  Constitution  Bill  of  New  South 
Wales,  but  a  wish  was  expressed  that  the  Imperial 
Parliament  would  pass  a  special  Act  to  attain  the 
desired  end.  When  Wentworth  was  shortly  after- 
wards in  England,  he  made  still  further  efforts  to 
bring  about  the  establishment  of  a  General  Assembly, 
and  took  an  active  part  in  the  proceedings  of  the 
"  General  Association  for  the  Australian  Colonies," 
which  in  1857  presented  a  petition  to  the  Secretary 
of  State  urging  the  necessity  of  immediate  legislation 
to  sanction  the  formation  of  a  federal  body.  A  Bill 
was  even  drafted  by  Wentworth  and  sent  along  with 
the  petition,  but  the  Secretary  of  State  declined  to 
take  action  in  the  matter. 

In  the  colonies  themselves  the  subject  was  also 
receiving  some  attention,  in  both  New  South 
Wales  in  1856  and  in  Victoria  in  1857  Select  Com- 
mittees were  appointed  to  consider  the  best  means 
of  legislating  on  matters  of  common  interest.  The 
report  of  the  Victorian  Committee,  which  recom- 
mended the  holding  of  an  Intercolonial  Conference, 
was  passed  by  both  houses ;  but  in  New  South 
Wales  the  necessary  resolutions  were  delayed  in  the 


THE   CUSTOMS   COMPACT.  431 

Assembly,  and  although  the  report  urged  that  the 
matter  "  could  not  be  longer  postponed  without  the 
danger  of  creating  serious  grounds  of  antagonism  and 
jealousy,  which  would  tend  greatly  to  embarrass,  if 
not  entirely  to  prevent,  its  future  settlement  upon  a 
satisfactory  basis,"  Parliament  was  prorogued  without 
anything  having  been  done.  Many  years  passed 
before  another  attempt  to  effect  federal  government 
was  made  ;  but  meanwhile  three  colonies — New 
South  Wales,  South  Australia,  and  Victoria — entered 
into  an  agreement  to  suspend  the  collection  of  cus- 
toms duties  on  the  border  for  three  years,  thus 
making  the  overland  trade  between  the  colonies 
practically  unrestricted.  This  might  have  led  to  a 
more  complete  scheme  for  joint  action  had  not 
Victoria  abrogated  the  agreement  before  the  three 
years  had  expired. 

In  1 88 1  a  conference  was  held  in  Sydney  at  which 
a  Bill  was  framed,  under  the  guidance  of  Sir  Henry 
Parkes,  creating  a  partly  legislative  and  partly  ad- 
ministrative body ;  but  it  was  only  intended  "  to 
pave  the  way  to  a  complete  federal  organisation  here- 
after." For  the  next  two  years  no  steps  were  taken 
to  bring  the  measure  into  operation,  but  in  1883 
another  conference  met  in  Sydney,  at  which  repre- 
sentatives from  all  the  colonies  were  present,  and  the 
old  Bill  of  1 88 1  was  slightly  altered,  and  forwarded  to 
England,  where  it  was  passed  by  the  Imperial  Parlia- 
ment in  1885.  Under  the  Federal  Council  Act,  as 
this  law  was  called,  the  function  of  the  Council  was 
simply  to  give  advice,  and  it  possessed  no  executive 
authority  whatever.  The  necessary  enabling  Acts 


432  FEDERATION. 

were  passed,  at  first  by  four  colonies  and  later  by 
South  Australia,  but  New  South  Wales  and  New 
Zealand  have  persistently  declined  to  join.  The  first 
session  was  held  in  Hobart  in  1886,  and  several 
meetings  have  since  taken  place,  but  the  inherent 
weakness  of  the  whole  scheme  has  rendered  the 
deliberations  of  the  Council  of  but  small  importance. 
In  1887  another  step  was  taken  in  the  direction  of 
common  action  in  matters  of  mutual  interest.  The 
progress  of  Australian  commerce  had  been  so  great, 
and  the  increase  in  wealth  so  rapid,  that  it  became 
necessary  to  largely  augment  the  naval  force  in 
Australian  waters.  Accordingly  the  Australasian 
Naval  Force  Act  was  passed.  By  this  measure  it  is 
provided  that  there  shall  be  a  force  of  sea-going  ships 
of  war,  consisting  of  five  fast  cruisers  and  two  tor- 
pedo gunboats,  having  the  same  status  as  warships  of 
the  same  class  in  the  Imperial  Navy,  and  under  the 
sole  control  of  the  naval  commander-in-chief  of  the 
Australian  squadron.  The  ships  are  to  be  retained 
within  the  limits  of  the  station  in  times  of  peace  or 
war,  and  they  may  be  only  sent  beyond  those  limits 
with  the  special  consent  of  the  Australian  Govern- 
ments. The  Imperial  Government  agreed  to  provide 
for  the  first  cost  of  these  vessels,  and  all  other  charges 
previous  to  their  arrival  in  Australia,  but  the  colonies 
at  the  same  time  undertook  to  pay  5  per  cent,  on  the 
first  cost,  but  such  payment  not  to  exceed  the  sum  of 
£35,000  per  annum,  and  in  addition  to  bear  the 
expense,  up  to  £91,000,  of  maintaining  three  fast 
cruisers  with  one  gunboat  in  commission  and  the 
other  in  reserve.  The  annual  contribution  of  the 


THE   CONFERENCE   OF   1890.  433 

several  colonies  is  calculated  in  proportion  to  their 
population,  the  agreement  is  for  ten  years,  terminable 
only  by  two  years'  notice. 

The  most  important  step  towards  the  federation 
of  the  Australasian  colonies  was,  however,  taken  in 
February,  1 890,  when  a  conference  of  the  representa- 
tives of  the  seven  colonies  met  in  Parliament  House, 
Melbourne,  on  February  6th.  Two  representatives 
attended  from  each  of  the  colonies  except  Western 
Australia,  which  sent  only  one,  and  at  seven  meetings 
the  question  of  federation  was  discussed  at  length. 
Finally,  the  Conference  adopted  an  address  to  the 
Queen,  expressing  loyalty,  and  enclosing  resolutions 
which  affirmed  the  expediency  of  an  immediate  union 
under  the  Crown  of  the  Australasian  colonies.  It 
was  also  recommended  that  steps  should  be  taken  for 
the  appointment  of  delegates  to  a  national  Austra- 
lasian Convention,  to  frame  a  scheme  for  a  Federal 
Constitution.  Delegates  were  subsequently  duly 
appointed  by  the  different  Australasian  Parliaments, 
and  on  March  2,  1891,  the  Convention  met  in  Sydney. 
There  were  forty-five  members,  the  most  notable 
public  men  in  the  colonies,  each  state  sending  seven 
delegates,  with  the  exception  of  New  Zealand,  which 
only  sent  three.  Sir  Henry  Parkes,  who  was  practi- 
cally the  author  of  this  latest  federation  movement, 
was  unanimously  elected  President  of  the  Convention, 
and  Sir  Samuel  Griffiths,  Premier  of  Queensland, 
Vice-President.  The  public  were  admitted  to  the 
debates,  and  an  official  record  of  the  proceedings  was 
published.  A  series  of  resolutions,  moved  by  Sir 
Henry  Parkes,  were,  after  full  discussion,  adopted 

29 


434  FEDERATION. 

with  slight  amendment  The  resolutions  as  carried 
were  : — 

"  That  in  order  to  establish  and  secure  an  enduring 
foundation  for  the  structure  of  a  Federal  Government, 
the  principles  embodied  in  the  Resolutions  following 
be  agreed  to  : — 

"  (i)  That  the  powers  and  privileges  and  territorial 
rights  of  the  several  existing  colonies  shall  remain 
intact,  except  in  respect  to  such  surrenders  as  may  be 
agreed  upon  as  necessary  and  incidental  to  the  power 
and  authority  of  the  National  Federal  Government. 

"  (2)  No  State  shall  be  formed  by  separation  from 
another  State,  nor  shall  any  State  be  formed  by  the 
junction  of  two  or  more  States  or  parts  of  States, 
without  the  consent  of  the  legislatures  of  the  States 
concerned,  as  well  as  of  the  Federal  Parliament. 

"  (3)  That  the  trade  and  intercourse  between  the 
Federated  Colonies,  whether  by  means  of  land  carriage 
or  coastal  navigation,  shall  be  absolutely  free. 

"  (4)  That  the  power  and  authority  to  impose 
Customs  duties,  and  duties  of  Excise  upon  goods  the 
subject  of  Customs  duties,  and  to  offer  bounties,  shall 
be  exclusively  lodged  in  the  Federal  Government  and 
Parliament,  subject  to  such  disposal  of  the  revenues 
thence  derived  as  shall  be  agreed  upon. 

"  (5)  That  the  military  and  naval  defence  of 
Australia  shall  be  entrusted  to  federal  "forces  under 
one  command. 

"  (6)  That  provision  should  be  made  in  the  Federal 
Constitution  which  will  enable  each  State  to  make 
such  amendments  in  its  constitution  as  may  be  neces- 
sary for  the  purposes  of  the  Federation. 


SIR   HENRY  PARKES'   RESOLUTION.  435 

"  Subject  to  these  and  other  necessary  conditions, 
this  Convention  approves  of  the  framing  of  a  Federal 
Constitution  which  shall  establish — 

"  (i)  A  Parliament,  to  consist  of  a  Senate  and  a 
House  of  Representatives,  the  former  consisting  of 
an  equal  number  of  members  from  each  colony,  to  be 
elected  by  a  system  which  shall  provide  for  the 
periodical  retirement  of  one-third  of  the  members,  so 
securing  to  the  body  itself  a  perpetual  existence, 
combined  with  definite  responsibility  to  the  electors, 
the  latter  to  be  elected  by  districts  formed  on  a 
population  basis,  and  to  possess  the  sole  power  of 
originating  all  bills  appropriating  revenue  or  imposing 
taxation. 

"  (2)  A  Judiciary,  consisting  of  a  Federal  Supreme 
Court,  which  shall  constitute  a  High  Court  of  Appeal 
for  Australia. 

"  (3)  An  Executive,  consisting  of  a  Governor- 
General,  and  such  persons  as  may  from  time  to  time 
be  appointed  as  his  advisers." 

Three  committees  were  appointed — one  to  consider 
and  report  upon  matters  relating  to  Finance,  Taxa- 
tion, and  Trade  ;  another  to  make  recommendations 
concerning  the  establishment  of  a  Federal  Judiciary ; 
and  a  third  to  frame  a  Bill  for  the  establishment  of  a 
Federal  Constitution.  On  the  3ist  of  March  Sir 
Samuel  Griffiths,  the  chairman  of  the  Committee  on 
Constitutional  Machinery,  brought  up  a  draft  "  Bill 
to  constitute  the  Commonwealth  of  Australia."  After 
consideration  the  Bill  was  adopted  on  the  pth  of  April, 
and  it  was  resolved  by  the  convention  that  the  Parlia- 
ment of  each  colony  should  submit  it  to  the  people  of 


436  FEDERATION. 

the  several  States.  It  was  also  agreed  that  so  soon 
as  the  constitution  should  be  adopted  by  three  of  the 
colonies  the  Imperial  Parliament  should  be  urged  to 
establish  the  Federal  Government  forthwith. 

So  far,  although  the  question  has  been  debated  in 
the  Parliaments  of  some  of  the  colonies,  nothing 
definite  has  been  done,  and  the  whole  question  has 
been  regarded  by  the  great  bulk  of  the  population 
with  singular  apathy.  That  some  such  federal 
organisation  must  be  brought  into  existence  no  one 
can  doubt,  for  the  anomalies  of  hostile  tariffs,  varia- 
tions in  the  gauge  of  railways,  appeal  to  the  Privy 
Council,  and  numerous  other  matters  demand  atten- 
tion and  reform  which  can  only  be  effected  by  joint 
action  on  the  part  of  the  whole  of  the  provinces. 
It  is  difficult  to  foretell  how  or  when  the  desired 
consummation  will  be  reached,  but  the  sooner  a 
Federal  Government  is  established  the  sooner  will 
the  colonies  of  Australasia  take  their  proper  place 
amongst  the  nations  of  the  world. 


APPENDIX. 


STATISTICS  OF  THE  COMMONWEALTH  OF  AUSTRALIA,  1890-91. 


Colony. 

Horses. 

Horned 
Cattle. 

Sheep. 

Wool 
Exported. 

Area  under 
Crop. 

New  South  Wales 

No. 
444,163 

456  4^Q 

No. 
1,909,009 
1,782,978 

No. 
55,986,431 

12.  7Q6.IJ.3 

£ 

9,232,672 

c.  03-3.603 

Acres. 
852,704 
2.O3I  Q=;S 

36^,812 

5,  er8  264. 

1  8  OO7  234 

South  Australia  .  . 
Western  Australia 
Tasmania  

199,605 
44.384 

3I.I65 

574.032 
130,970 
162,440 

7,050,544 
2,524,913 
1,619,256 

1,876,240 
261,352 
419,173 

2-093-515 
69,676 
I  £7.  376 

New  Zealand  .... 

211,040 

831,831 

18,117,186 

4,150,599 

1,636,179 

Australasia  .  . 

1,732,628 

10,949,524 

116.041,707 

24,398,381 

7,066,398 

Colony. 

Popula- 
tion. 

Shipping 
Inwards 
and 
Outwards. 

Total  Trade. 

Exports  of 
Domestic 
Produce. 

Length 
of  Tele- 
graph 
Line. 

Rail- 
ways. 
Length 
of  Line. 

New  South  Wales. 
Victoria  

No. 
1,165,300 
1,157,804 

410,345 
325,766 
53.285 
152,619 
634,058 

Tons. 
4,761,872 

4,363-341 
910,779 

2>  337,674 
904,861 
951,247 
1,312,474 

£ 

44,660,941 
36,220,237 
13,621,212 

17.295-765 
1,546,260 
3,384,504 
16,072,245 

£ 

17,232,725 
10,291,821 
8,412,244 

4.550,139 
659,661 
1,430,806 
9,428,761 

Miles. 
11,231 
6,958 
9,830 
5.623 
2,892 
2,004 
5,060 

Miles. 
2,263 
2,763 

2,195 
1,829 

585 
399 
I.956 

Queensland    

South  Australia    .. 
Western  Australia  . 
Tasmania  

New  Zealand    .... 
Australasia    .  . 

3,899,177 

15,542,248 

132,801,164 

52,006,157 

43-598 

11,990 

433 


APPENDIX. 


STATISTICS  OF  THE  COMMONWEALTH  OF  AUSTRALIA,  1890-91. 


Colony. 

Gold 
Produce. 

Deposits  in 
Banks. 

Public 
Revenue. 

Public  Debt. 

O£. 

127,761 
588,560 
610,587 
26,086 
22,256 
23.451 
193.  T93 

£ 
40,390,159 
45,261,932 
11,720,112 

9.933.I3S 
1,398,417 
4,378,448 
15,806,847 

£ 

10,047,152 
8,343,588 
3,350,223 
2,732,222 
497,670 
758,100 
4,193,942 

£ 

51,010,433 
43,610,265 

29.434.734 
21,657,300 
1,617,445 
6,432,800 
38,802,350 

Victoria  

Queensland    

South  Australia    

Western  Australia    

Tasmania  

New  Zealand     

I.I&I.8Q4 

i28.88o.OTO 

20.  022.  807 

102,  c;6::.327 

OCCUPATION  OF  LANDS  AT  THE  COMMENCEMENT  OF  1891. 


Colony. 

Area  of  Colony. 

Area  Alienated 
or  in  process  of 
Alienation. 

Area  Leased. 

Area  neither 
Alienated  nor 
Leased. 

New  South  Wales  . 
Victoria  

Acres. 
198,848,000 
c6.  24^.760 

Acres. 
44,758,151 

22  3<;Q.Oc;4 

Acres. 
148,122,194 
21,589,767 

Acres. 

5,967.655 
12,296,939 

Queensland   

427  8^8  080 

28c;.7O3  680 

124,314.4.18 

South  Australia    .  . 
Western  Australia  . 
Tasmania  

578,361,600 
678,400,000 
16  778,000 

11,908,168 

5.154,673 
A   60  S  O22 

235,980,400 
104,921,357 
666.  iQ3 

330,473,032 
568,323,970 
11,416,785 

New  Zealand    .... 

66,710,320 

2O,l82,239 

13,425,303 

33,102,778 

Australasia    .  . 

2,023,181,760 

126,877,289 

810,408,894 

1,085,895,577 

ALIENATION  OF  LANDS  AT  THE  COMMENCEMENT  OF  1891. 


Colony. 

Area  Alienated 
in  Fee  Simple. 

Area  in 
process  of 
Alienation. 

Area  Alienated 
or  in  process  of 
Alienation. 

Area  neither 
Alienated  nor 
in  process  of 
Alienation. 

New  South  Wales  
Victoria  

Acres. 
26,278,033 
16,091,880 

Acres. 
18,480,118 
6  267,174 

Acres. 
44,758,151 
22.3^0.0^4 

Acres. 
154,089,849 
•33.886,706 

io.2t;8.6<C7 

17  8lQ  082 

South  Australia  
Western  Australia.  .  .  . 
Tasmania    

7,002,339 
5,154,673 
j..  60^,022 

4,905,829 

11,908,168 

5.  '54.673 

4.  60  e  O22 

566,453,432 

673,  245.327 
12,082,978 

New  Zealand  

*i9,666,9i6 

SIC,  323 

20,182,239 

46,528,081 

Australasia  .  . 

8q,i47,=;20 

37,72Q,76q 

126,877.280 

1,806,304,471 

*  Includes  841,621  acres  held  under  perpetual  lease.          \  Return  not  available. 


INDEX. 


Aborigines  :  influence  of  white 
men  on,  9  ;  Governor  Phillip 
and  the,  39  ;  conflicts  with,  40  ; 
treatment  under  King,  51 ;  under 
Macquarie,  92  ;  in  Western 
Australia,  281  ;  conflicts  with 
explorers,  281,  310  ;  in  Queens- 
land, 333,  337  ;  in  Victoria, 
229  ;  in  Tasmania,  185  ; 
197-200  ;  affray  at  Hobart, 
185  ;  G.  A.  Robinson's  dealings 
with,  200 ;  Governor  Arthur 
and,  197-199  ;  at  Flinder's 
Island,  200 

Adelaide,  foundation  of,  299 

Agriculture,  172 

Akaroa,  the  French  at,  362 

Arabanoo  captured  by  Phillip,  40 

Arthur,  Colonel  George,  in  Tas- 
mania, 192  ;  dealings  with  the 
natives,  I97~I99;  press  laws, 
195 

Auckland,  seat  of  Government 
removed  from,  409 

Australia,  Bank  of,  lottery,  125 

Australia  first  discovered,  2  ;  oc- 
cupied by  England,  9 ;  arrival 
of  first  immigrants  in,  99 ; 
commonwealth  of,  432 

Australian  Colonies  Government 
Bill,  139 

B 

Ballaarat,  riots  at,  253  et  seq. 
Bank  establishment  of  first,  122 
Bank  of  Australia  lottery,  125 


Bank  savings,  115 

Banks,  Sir  Joseph,  with  Captain 
Cook,  7  ;  his  letter  to  Bligh, 
70 

Bannister  Saxe,  99 

Batman,  John,  227  ;  and  the 
bushrangers,  228  ;  at  Port 
Phillip,  ib. 

Baxter  with  Eyre,  307 ;  killed  by 
blacks,  310 

Bay  of  Islands,  whalers  at,  351  ; 
fighting  at,  363 

Bent,  Judge,  and  Macquarie,  95 

Bigge,  report  of  Mr.  Commis- 
sioner, 95,  97,  330 

Bligh,  Captain  William,  67  ; 
appointed  Governor,  ib.  ;  his 
letter  from  Banks,  70  ;  his  arbi- 
trary behaviour,  74  ;  his  quarrel 
with  Macarthur,  74-78  ;  is 
deposed,  79 ;  his  subsequent 
conduct,  81 

Blue  Mountains,  attempts  to 
cross  the,  91 

Botany  Bay,  Cook  visits,  9  ;  the 
first  fleet  in,  30  ;  is  abandoned, 
31 

Bourke,  Sir  Richard,  in  New 
South  Wales,  1 14 

Bowen,  Sir  George,  in  Queens- 
land, 342 

Boyd,  massacre  of  the  crew  of  the, 

351 
Brisbane,    foundation    of,    333   ; 

first  land   auction  sale  in,  334 
Brisbane,    Sir   Thomas,  in    New 

South  Wales,  97  et  seq. 


440 


INDEX. 


Broome,  Sir  Napier,  in  Western 
Australia,  290 

Browne,  Colonel  T.  G.,  in  Tas- 
mania, 381,  386  ;  in  New 
Zealand,  381 

Burke,  Robert  O'Hara,  explora- 
tions of,  263  ;  death,  266 

Burra  Burra  mines,  313 

Busby,  Mr.,  British  Resident,  in 
New  Zealand,  358,  359,  362 

Bushranging  in  Tasmnnia,  189  ; 
in  New  South  Wales,  105  ; 
in  Victoria,  242  ;  legislation 
against,  105,  115,  159,  243 


C?dell,  Mr.  Francis,  navigates  the 

Murray  River,  316 
Cannibalism,  351,  353 
Canterbury    settlement   founded, 

376 

Charter  of   New  Zealand  Com- 
pany, 359 
Chatham   Islands,  Te    Kooti   at, 

403 
Chinese,     legislation     regarding, 

424  ;    outrage  on,    at    Golden 

Point,  162 
Chisholm,    Mrs.     Caroline,     the 

immigrants'  friend,  134 
Church     Mission    established    in 

New  Zealand,  353 
Chute,  General,  402 
Clarke,  Rev.  W.  B.,  finds  gold, 

145  . 

Coal  discovered,  213,  216 
Collins,    David,   in    New    South 
Wales,   44  ;  commands    settle- 
ment sent  to  Port  Phillip,  222  ; 
abandons  Port    Phillip,    223  ; 
in  Tasmania,  182 
Colonisation  Companies   in  New 
Zealand,       361    ;     in      South 
Australia,    297  ;     in    Western 
Australia,  278 
Colonisation,  Gibbon  Wakefield's 

scheme  for,  295  el  seq. 
Colonisation  Commissioners,  299 
Confiscation    of    land    in    New 
Zealand,  398 


Constitutions,     changes    in    the, 

127,  212,  262,   290,  321,  342, 

411 
Cook,    explorations    of   Captain 

James,    8  ;    is   wrecked,     10  ; 

visits  New  Zealand,  8 
Copper,  discoveries  of,  311 
Courts  of  law,  changes  in,  98 
Crossley,  George,  76 
Currency,  state  of,  in  New  South 

Wales,  88  ;  in  South  Australia, 

319 

Customs  duties,  friction  over, 
in  Victoria,  431 ;  intercolonial 
conference  on,  431 

D 

Dampier,  William,  explorations 
of,  6 

Darling,  Sir  Ralph,  in  New 
South  Wales,  101  ;  the  case  of 
Sudds  and  Thompson,  106 

Darling,  Sir  Charles,  in  Victoria, 
268;  is  recalled,  271  ;  proposed 
grant  to,  271 

Davey,  Colonel,  in  Tasmania,  197 

Denison,  Sir  William,  in  Tas- 
mania, 208  ;  in  New  South 
Wales,  152 

Ee  Thierry,  Baron,  his  proclama- 
tion, 358 

Discovery,  2  et  seq. 

Douglas's,  Dr.,  quarrels  with 
Marsden,  99 

Droughts,  famine  caused  by,  105  ; 
loss  of  stock  from,  ib. 

Du  Cane,  Sir  Charles,  in  Tas- 
mania, 215 


Education,  early  efforts  at,  164  ; 

system  of  public,  165 
Emancipists,  84  et  set].,  103 
Embassy  to    England    Iroin  Vic- 
toria, 273 

Eureka  .Stockade,  attack  on,  253 
Explorations,  2  et  seq.  ;  107-113, 
181,  222,  263,  285,  307,  337-41 
Eyre,   E.  j.,  explorations  of,  307 
et  seq. 


INDEX. 


441 


Famine,  42,  105 

Fawkner,  N.  S.,  J.P.,  232 

Federal  Assembly,  proposals  for 
a,  11  ii 

Federal  Council,  establishment  of, 
127 

Female  Orphan  Institution  found- 
ed, 58 

Financial  Crisis,  124 

Firearms,  sale  prohibited,  369 

Fitzroy,  Sir  Charles,  in  New 
South  Wales,  131 

Fitzroy,  Captain,  in  New  Zealand, 

363 
Fleet,  voyage  of  the  first,  27  ;  in 

Botany  Bay,  30 
Floods,   loss  from,   105 
Forbes,  Chief  Justice,  98 
Foveaux,  Colonel,  in  New  South 

Wales,  80 
Franklin,  Sir  John,  in  Tasmania, 

202 
French  discovery  ships,    II,  32  ; 

rumours  of  intention   to    form 

settlements,  180  ;  Nauto  Borde- 

laise  Company,  362 

G 

General  Assembly,   formation  of, 

127 

Ghost  story  of  Farley's,  104 
Gipps,  Sir  George,  in  New  South 

Wales,  125 

Gladstone,  Mr.  W.  E.,  and  trans- 
portation, 133 
Gold,  discovery  of,  145  ;  effect  on 

wages  and  prices,  149  ;  Mount 

Morgan,  345 

Gold  fields,  riots  at  the,  148 
Government,  changes  in  form  of, 

127,  212,  262,  290,  321,  342, 

411 

Grey,  Earl,  239 
Grey,  Sir  George,  in  New  Zealand, 

369 
Grose,  Major,  47 

H 

Hampton,  Mr.  J.  S.,  in  Western 
Australia,  284 


Hauhatis,  first  appearance  of,  400  ; 

war  with,  401 
Hawkesbury,  discovery  of,  settlers 

at,  63 

Heke,  Hone,  war  with,  365 
Hobart,  settlement  formed  at,  180 
Hobson,  Captain,  in  New  Zealand, 

359 

Hongi,  wrrs  with,  356 

Howe  the  bushranger,  189  ;  death 
of,  192 

Howitt,  Mr.  Alfred,  searches  for 
Burke' s  party,  267 

Hunter,  Captain  John,  in  New- 
South  Wales,  52  ;  is  recalled, 
54 

Immigration,  first  free.  99  ;  State 
aid  to,  99 ;  effect  of  gold  dis- 
coveries on, 150 

Intercolonial  conference  on  Cus- 
toms duties,  431 


Johnson,  George,  is  sent  for  by 
Bligh,  77  ;  releases  Macarthur, 
78  ;  deposes  Bligh,  79  ;  trial  of, 

83 
Jury,    trial    by,   introduced,    95  ; 

the  Emancipists  and,  103 
Justice,  administration  of,  98 

K 

Kapunda,  discovery  of  copper  at, 

31?.  . 

Kawiti  joins  Heke,  370 

Kennedy,  Sir  Arthur,  in  Western 
Australia,  284 

Kent,  Lieutenant,  and  Bligh,  81 

King,  Captain,  P.  G.,  at  Norfolk 
Island,  35  ;  with  Hunter,  54  ; 
is  made  Governor,  54  ;  and  the 
liquor  traffic,  57  ;  troubles  with 
the  military,  51  ;  suppresses  an 
insurrection,  62 

Kingi,  Wi,  a  friend  of  the  Euro- 
peans, 373,  381  ;  his  wars,  382 

Kooti,  Te,  sent  to  Chatham  Island, 
403  ;  escapes,  ib.  ;  wars,  405  ; 
escapes  into  King  Country,  ib. 

Kororareka  sacked  by  Heke,  366 


442 


INDEX. 


Labour,  remuneration  of,  418; 
trade  in  Island,  421 ;  Parlia- 
mentary party,  428 

Latrobe,  Mr.,  in  Victoria,  236  et 
seq. 

Legislatures,  constitution  of,  127, 
212,  262,  290,  321,  342,  411 

Leichardt,   Ludwig,   explorations 

°f>  339  5  l°ss  °fi  34° 
License  fee,  objections  to,  242 
Livestock,  introduction  of,  170; 

Macarthur's  stocks,    170;   loss 

from  droughts,  105 
Lowe,  Mr.  R.  (Lord  Sherbrooke), 

142 

M 

Macarthur,  John,  successfully 
grows  fine  wool,  55  ;  offers  his 
farm  for  sale  to  Government, 
56  ;  quarrels  with  Bligh,  74  ;  is 
imprisoned,  77  ;  but  released  by 
Johnson,  78 ;  petitions  for 
Bligh's  deposition,  ib.  ;  is  exiled 
from  New  South  Wales,  80 

Maconochie,  Captain,  203 

McCulloch's  scheme  for  tacking 
Bills,  269 

Macquarie,  Colonel  Lachlan,  in 
New  South  Wales,  84 ;  report 
by  Mr.  Bigge  on  administration 

of,  95 

Macquarie  river,  discovery  of,  90 
Maoris,  their  character,  354,  355  > 

captured  by  King  to  teach  flax 

manufacture,    40 ;    wars   with, 

363  et  set]. 

Marsden,  Rev.  Samuel,  87 
Massacres    of    natives,     185  ;     at 

Myall  Creek,  126 
Melbourne  founded,  230,  235 
Mounted  Police,  100 
Myall  Creek,  massacre  at,  126 


N 

Nauto-Bordelaise  Company,  362 
Native  police,  336,  369 
Native  Land  Courts,  402 


New  South  Wales,  foundation  of 
colony  of,  33  ;  early  troubles  in, 
38  ;  supplies  fail,  43  ;  famine, 
44  ;  arrival  of  provisions,  45  ; 
Phillip's  departure,  47  ;  military 
difficulties,  49  ;  natives  in,  50  ; 
wool  growing  commenced,  55  ; 
Hunter's  administration,  50, 52  ; 
King's  administration,  56 ;  in- 
surrection of  convicts,  61  ; 
Bligh's  administration,  73 ; 
quarrel  with  Macarthur,  74 ; 
Bligh's  deposition,  79 ;  Mac- 
quarie's  administration,  85  ; 
the  rule  of  Brisbane  and 
Darling,  97  ;  Sir  Richard 
Bourke  in,  114;  struggle  for 
responsible  Government  in, 
116  ;  dealing  with  Crown  lands 
in,  155 ;  bushranging,  158 ; 
pastoral  industry  in,  170;  pre- 
sent condition  of,  170 
New  South  Wales  Corps,  48 
New  Zealand,  first  settlement  of, 
356;  Maoris  in,  351  et  seq.', 
wars,  363  et  seq. ;  fears  of 
French  settlement  in,  362 ; 
Nauto-Bordelaise  Company  in, 
362 ;  constitution  of,  ib.  ;  loan 
policy  in,  413  ;  present  condi- 
tion of,  414 
New  Zealand  Company  founded, 

359  ;  dissolved,  362 
Norfolk  Island  occupied,  35 
North  Island,  wars  in,  397 

O 

Ord,  Sir  Harry,  in  Western  Aus- 
tralia, 287 
Oxley,  Mr.,  explorations  of,  330 


Parkes,  Sir  Henry,  433 

Parliament,  the  first,  152 

Pastoral  interests,  171 

Payment  of  members  in  New 
South  Wales,  153  ;  in  Victoria, 
272 

Peel,  Mr.  T.,  in  Western  Aus- 
tralia, 279 


INDEX. 


443 


Pensioners,  settlements  of  mili- 
tary, 376 

Perouse,  La,  at  Botany  Bay,  32 

Phillip,  Captain  Arthur,  appointed 
first  Governor,  19  ;  prepara- 
tions, 21  ;  on  the  voyage,  27  : 
heroic  conduct  in  time  of  famine, 
44  ;  is  wounded,  40  ;  leaves  the 
colony,  47 

Police,  native,  369 

Polynesian  labour,  346 

Port  Dalrymple,  184 

Port  Jackson  occupied  by  Phillip, 

31 

Portland  Bay,  the  Hentys  at,  226 
Port    Phillip,  discovery  of,  222 
Collins  at,  223 ;  is  abandoned, 
225  ;  Batman,  227  ;  Batman  at, 
227  et  seg. ;  agitation  for  separa- 
tion from  New   South  Wales, 
237 ;    mock  elections,  238  ;  is 
separated,  239 
Press  laws,  Darling  and  the,  102  ; 

in  Tasmania,  195 
Property  Act  (Torrens),  373 
Punishments,  Sudds  and  Thomp- 
son, 1 06 


•Queensland,  Oxley  at  Moreton 
Bay,  332  ;  treatment  of  natives 
in,  336 ;  Polynesian  labour, 
346 ;  System  of  government, 
343  ;  gold  in,  343,  345 

R 
Railways,  first  line  opened  in  New 

South  Wales,  157 
Rainfall  uncertain,  171 
Rauparaha  Te,  363,  371 
Robinson,    G.  A.,  and  the  Tas- 

manian  natives,  200 
Ross,  Major,  38 

S 

Settlers,  first  free,  99 

Sheep,  introduction  of,  170 ;  im- 
provement in  breed  of,  170 

South  Australia,  first  settlement, 
299  ;  distress  in,  302  ;  Grey's 
administration,  305  ;  discoveries 


of  copper  in,  311  ;  effect  of  gold 
discoveries,  316;  overland  tele- 
graph line  in,  326 ;  Northern 
Territory,  325 

Spain,  Mr.,  in  New  Zealand,  364 

Strzelecki,  Count,  145 

Sturt,  Captain,  his    explorations, 

319,  338 

Sudds  and  Thompson,  case  of,  106 
Swan  River,   Freemantle's  report 

on,   286 ;    settlement  at,   278  ; 

early  disasters,  280 
Sydney  Cove,  Phillip  selects  for 

settlement,  31 


Tapu  Maori  Custom,  355 

Taranaki,  wars  in,  387  et  seq. 

Tasmania,  effects  of  gold  discovery 
on,  211  ;  abolition  of  transpor- 
tation to,  210;  constitution,  212; 
aborigines  in,  185,  197-200 

Te  Kooti,  403 

Te  Whero  Whero,  384 

Te  Whiti,  406 

Telegraph  overlaid,  326 

Thierry,  Baron  de,  358 

Thompson,  Mr.  Deas,  143,  146, 
148 

Torrens,  Sir  R.  R. ,  Real  Property 
Act,  323 

Transportation,  cessation  of,  210 

Treaty  of  Waitangi,  365 

U 
United  Tribes  of   New  Zealand, 

358 
University  founded,  135 


Van  Diemen's  Land  Company,  196 
Van  Diemen's  Land  discovered, 
180  ;  first  occupied,  180  ;  abori- 
gines in,  185,  197-200;  martial 
law,  189;  made  a  separate 
colony,  1 88;  bushranging  in, 
189 ;  name  changed  to  Tas- 
mania, 210 

Victoria,  constitution  of,  237  ;  gold 
discoveries  in,  239 ;  disturbances 
at  diggings,  242  ;  Eureka  Stock- 


444 


INDEX. 


ade,  253  ;  constitutional  diffi- 
culties, 258  ;  tacking  bills,  269  ; 
resources  of,  275 

W 

Wairau  massacre,  363 
Wakefield,  Captain,  R.N.,  363 
Wakefield,  Colonel,  363 
Wakefield,   Edward  Gibbon,   his. 

system  for  colonisation,  295  et 

seq. 

Wars,  Maori,  363  et  seq. 
Wentworth,  Mr.  D'Arcy,  87 
Wentworth,  W.  C.,  cross  the  Blue 

Mountains,  91 
Western  Australia,  first  settlement 


in,  276 ;  hardships  of  colonists 
in,  280 ;  transportation  to,  282  ; 
abolition  of  transportation  to, 
285  ;  constitutional  government 
in,  287  ;  natural  resources  of, 
288 
Whalers  on  New  Zealand  coast, 

351 

Wilmot,  Sir  Eardley,  in  Tas- 
mania, 205 

Wynyard,  Lieutenant-Colonel,  in 
New  Zealand,  379 


Yarra  Yarra,  Fawkner  and    Bat- 
man on  the,  229,  230 


8693 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  AT  LOS  ANGELES 

THE  UNIVERSITY  LIBRARY 
This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below 


NOV  2  8 


1938 


I 

7 


NOV  4      tW 
IKJV1P   «** 

flUG  7     t942 


Y  2  7  19tt 

SEP  13 

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Form  L-9-20j«-8,'37 


JAK4 


RECEI\ 
LD-U 


ED 

H?L 


UAN 


>-• 


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110 
T71 


